Thomas Steffens

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Thomas Steffens is a Professor at the Central Hesse University of Applied Sciences (THM), where he has been teaching and conducting research since 2004. He is affiliated with the Department of LSE and serves as the founder and deputy director of the Center for Sustainable Engineering and Environmental Systems (ZEuUS). His work focuses on environmental and safety technologies with practical applications in healthcare, educational, and industrial settings.

Steffens completed his education with a Dipl.-Ing. in safety engineering from the University of Wuppertal (1985-1992) followed by a doctorate (Dr.-Ing.) from the same institution in 1996. His professional journey includes founding and operating an engineering office (1997-2015), serving as managing director of Contract Electroplating (2002-2004), and working as a research associate at the FGW Research Association.

His research interests center on immission control (pollutants, sound/noise) and safety technology (occupational, plant, operational and product safety). Steffens specializes in identifying, assessing and preventing dust emissions in workplace and environmental contexts, ambient noise analysis, and developing innovative measurement systems including IoT applications for monitoring emissions and immissions. His work has significant applications in healthcare settings, particularly in operating room ventilation and surgical smoke control.

Steffens' publication record demonstrates a clear focus on practical engineering solutions to contemporary health and safety challenges, particularly evident in his extensive research on ventilation systems during the COVID-19 pandemic. His work bridges environmental engineering with healthcare safety, producing actionable insights for classroom and operating room environments.

As an active academic and consultant, Steffens offers expertise in environmental and climate protection, safety technology, and technical process auditing. He serves as an expert witness for courts and legal entities, conducts company audits, and develops management systems for environmental and occupational safety compliance.

At THM, Steffens supervises student theses on topics including quantification of immission near diffuse emission sources, development of sensor technology for workplace monitoring, Monte Carlo simulation in emission control, traffic noise analysis, and technical process auditing. His ZEuUS research center provides a platform for interdisciplinary work on sustainable engineering and environmental systems.