Leadership Team
"UMS has a mission to make the unseen visible and understandable in a world of increasing complexity." - Phil Meis
Phillip Meis, P.E.
President, Principal Engineer
Helena, MT
Don Haines
SUE Operations Lead
Seattle, WA
Elizabeth Breitmeyer
Geophysicist
Butte, MT
Daniel Colby
Sr. VP of Technology
Raleigh, NC

Phillip Meis, P.E.
Philip Meis, a registered professional engineer with a diverse background in civil design, surveying and mapping, geophysics, and data management, is well-suited for subsurface utility engineering. In 2002 Mr. Meis co-founded UMS to specifically address and execute SUE as a rigorous geophysical and engineering discipline. He has provided SUE services on a national level since 1996. He has presented regularly at numerous conferences including: National Highway Joint Usage and Utility Educational Conference; AASHTO Subcommittee for R/W and Utilities; Design Build Institute; Common Ground Alliance; DOT state conferences in CO, MT, UT, MN, WA; APWA National Congress. Mr. Meis has published numerous papers advocating the use of SUE and new data acquisition and data management techniques.
Education:
- M.S. Geophysical Engineering. Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO 1986 B.S. Industrial Engineering. Iowa State University, Ames, IA 1983Licenses/Certifications:
- Registered Professional Engineer – MT 12815, ID 9038, TX 88949, UT 5099195-2202, SD 7782, WY 10186, WI 38925-006, CO 37934, IA 18113, MN 44853, DC PE922124Memberships:
- Transportation Research Board (TRB) 2nd Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP2) R15B “Identifying Utility Conflicts and Solutions” - Chair - ASCE/CI/UESI Committee Standard Guideline for Recording and Exchanging Utility Infrastructure Data - Chair – ASCE Utility Engineering and Survey Institute (UESI) Risk Management Division - Member – UESI SUE and Utility Investigation Committee - Member – ASCE/CI ASCE 38-02 Standard for Collection and Depiction of Existing Subsurface Utilities - Associate – TRB AFB70 Utilities Committee - NOAA Corps Commissioned Officer – National Ocean Survey Junior Officer, National Geodetic Survey (1986-1990)
Don Haines
Senior Engineer
Washington, Colorado
Don Haines joined UMS in 2012 after an illustrious carrier with NOAA. In addition to Civil Engineering Mr. Haines’s expertise is in technology integration, surveying, and hydrographic data acquisition and processing. Don is senior project manager at UMS, covering the Pacific North West.
Education:
- Mechanical Engineering, Bachelors of Science, Michigan Technological University, 1987
- ASCE, CGA

Elizabeth Breitmeyer
As staff geophysicist for UMS Elizabeth isresponsible for processing and interpretation of advanced geophysical methodology including Raptor® multichannel ground penetrating radar (MCGPR), time domain electromagnetics (TDEM), frequency domain electromagnetics (FDEM), induced polarization (IP) electromagnetics, conventional GPR, SPAR 300™ model based inductive EM, acoustic pipe detection, downhole LiDAR, and bathymetry.
Elizabeth joined UMS in 2021 as a versatile team member with experience in GIS, remote sensing, Python programming, data management, geophysical and hydrologic modelling, geological surveying, soil mechanics, slope stability and waste containment. Elizabeth also has a background and skills in sales, team management, marketing, accounting, grant writing, fundraising, education, organization/efficiency, high communication and problem solving.
Education:
Education:
- M.Sc., Geophysical Engineering, Montana Tech, 2022
- B.Sc., Geological Engineering, Minor Geophysics & Hydrogeology University of Reno, 2007

Daniel Colby
Daniel Colby is an experienced executive leader with a strong geo-analytical and GIS technology background. Dan has a 25+ year track record in the utility industry and energy sectors. He is focused on next generation technology and team growth with an emphasis on data analytics, product research, and development. Dan is highly effective at business development, strategic leadership, and technology strategies in the energy industry.