People

Sven Wöhrle is the coordinator of the research focus Knowledge Discovery. He is responsible for the organization of the research focus and writes proposals, organizes meetings like the Research Colloquium and is in charge of the research data management.

Gernot Heisenberg is Professor for Data Analytics and Information Research at the Institute of Information Science at TH Köln (University of Applied Sciences). He teaches courses on Machine Learning / Deep Learning and Data Analytics.

Philipp Schaer is Professor for Information Retrieval with the Institute of Information Science at TH Köln (University of Applied Sciences) where he teaches courses on Information Retrieval, Database Systems, and Search Engine Technology.

Prof. Dr. Konrad Förstner holds a joint professorship for Data and Information Literacy at TH Köln and ZB MED - Information Center for Life Sciences

Professor for Databases and Data Literacy at TH Köln, specializing in Financial Data Science and Geospatial Analysis

Prof. Dr. Klaus Lepsky teaches information indexing and information retrieval at the Institute of Information Science at the TH Köln. His main areas of work and interest are knowledge organization and knowledge representation, computational linguistics, automatic indexing, and information retrieval.

Timo Breuer is a post-doc at the Institute of Information Science at TH Köln (University of Applied Sciences). He is part of the team led by Prof. Philipp Schaer and works in the area of information retrieval and recommender systems.

Björn Engelmann is a research associate at the Institute of Information Science at TH Köln (University of Applied Sciences). He is part of the team led by Prof. Philipp Schaer. He works in the area of information retrieval and recommender systems.

Fabian Haak is a research associate at the Institute of Information Science at TH Köln (University of Applied Sciences). He is part of the team led by Prof. Philipp Schaer and works in the area of information retrieval and recommender systems.

Jüri Keller is a research associate at the Institute of Information Science at TH Köln (University of Applied Sciences). As a member of Prof. Philipp Schaer’s team, he actively contributes to the field of information retrieval and recommender systems.

Natasha Randall is a dedicated researcher and PhD student at TH Köln, specializing in environmental monitoring and flood prediction using cutting-edge remote sensing technologies and machine learning approaches. Her work focuses on monitoring coffee driven deforestation and disaster risk reduction.

Dr. Hakan Akdag is a lecturer and post-doctoral researcher at the Institute of Information Science at TH Köln (University of Applied Sciences) and the German Aerospace Center (DLR). He has a background in theoretical physics and strategy consulting, is part of the team led by Prof. Dr. Gernot Heisenberg, and teaches courses on deep learning. His current research interests range from applications of high-performance computing to scalable machine learning and anomaly detection.

Ahmed Qarqour's research focuses on developing data-driven models for predicting heating system reliability. He is creating advanced analytical tools to monitor system conditions and forecast potential failures in heating systems. By analyzing real-world operational data, he enables early detection of issues before they lead to system failures. His work contributes to improving long-term system reliability and operational efficiency in heating systems. This research supports the development of predictive maintenance strategies that enhance energy efficiency and reduce maintenance costs.

Nolwenn Bernard is a postdoctoral researcher at TH Köln (University of Applied Sciences). She jointly works with the Institute of Data Science, Engineering, and Analytics (IDE+A), and the Institute of Information Science. In 2025, she obtained her PhD in Computer Science from the University of Stavanger, Norway, under the supervision of Prof. Krisztian Balog.

Andreas Kruff is a research associate at the Institute of Information Science at TH Köln (University of Applied Sciences). He is part of the team led by Prof. Philipp Schaer. He works in the area of information retrieval and recommender systems.