Meridian Environmental Technology advances science in everyday life

By: Jon Knutson, INFORUM

GRAND FORKS - Technology is supposed to help people and organizations work smarter and more efficiently.

That’s what Meridian Environmental Technology, with headquarters on the University of North Dakota campus, is all about, said Leon Osborne, its president and chief executive officer.

“Meridian is a company founded on the premise that you could bring advanced science and computer science technology to the forefront and solve problems of everyday life,” he said.

The company works with farmers, state highway departments and other organizations across the country.

Though many people associate the company with the weather, it’s more accurate to say Meridian handles weather applications as well as software and information solutions systems, Osborne said.

The company has 60 employees, 35 of whom are atmospheric scientists/meteorologists. Another 20 are computer scientists and the rest work in sociology, what Osborne calls “the human factor,” or on the business side.

The human-factor employees dig into the societal implications of how people use information, Osborne said.

More than half of the 60 employees have advanced degrees.

Meridian is growing and likely will have 65 to 70 employees by the end of the summer, Osborne said.

The company’s hires range from entry-level positions to people with many years of industry experience.

“We have a great staff. Without them we wouldn’t make it,” said Kathy Osborne, Meridian’s chief operations officer and Leon’s wife.

She and Leon are the primary owners of the business. Several employees own most of the rest.

Kathy Osborne, who has a business background, said she and her husband work well together and enjoy it.

Leon Osborne’s background is in atmospheric science. He’s served on the faculty of UND’s department of atmospheric sciences since 1979.

The company was founded with three employees in 1996, the year before record flooding devastated Grand Forks.

“The flood sidetracked us,” Osborne said with a wry smile.

The company really got going in 1998, when life in Grand Forks began returning to normal after the flood.

Two of Meridian’s key offerings are MDSS and the 511, which provides advanced traveler information.

In 511, Meridian works with highway departments in eight states to give travelers quick and easy access to information such as road conditions, route-specific travel weather, traffic congestion and accidents.

With MDSS, or Maintenance Design Support System, Meridian helps highway departments make decisions about road maintenance.

Meridian works with transportation agencies in 28 states.

The list includes the Indiana Department of Transportation.

Tony McClellan of the Indiana department said his organization has worked with Meridian for about a decade, receiving weather forecasting services and guidance on road maintenance decisions.

Meridian is good at what it does, he said.

But there’s more to Meridian than transportation-related services.

“Though much of what we do is transportation related, the infrastructure we’ve established also allows us to work with agriculture and energy,” Osborne said.

Meridian’s agricultural forecasting services include hourly forecasts out to 24 hours and monthly and seasonal outlooks for temperatures and precipitation.

In energy, Meridian can help organizations with their forecasted power production.

Osborne said North Dakota often is too focused on attracting out-of-state companies at the expense of young, growing companies already here.

“It’s the little guys, like Meridian, that get lost in the wash,” he said.

Even so, he’s confident Meridian will continue to grow as opportunities present themselves.

“This is exciting,” he said of Meridian’s growth and success. “It’s just a joy.”

Readers can reach Forum reporter Jonathan Knutson at (701) 241-5530