stance against the bugs. Another solution is a completely chemi-cal-free and pesticide-free system to elimi-nate bedbugs that are hiding in mattresses, bedclothes, electrical items, clothes and other sensitive items. The system works using the proven tech-nique of oxygen depletion. Items to be treated are placed in a spe-cially designed bag with activators and the bag is sealed. The chemical-free activators remove the oxygen from the bag and kill any bedbugs on the items in the bag. This is an extremely effective way of treat-ing expensive goods, saving the unneces-sary waste of money usually incurred by throwing them away after infestation. Rodent Threats The key danger of rats and mice is disease. Food contaminated with rodent feces can cause food poisoning; rat urine can cause leptospirosis, which attacks liver function. Hantavirus, a rodent-carried virus, causes severe respiratory diseases in humans and sometimes death. Simply sweeping an area that has rodent feces among the dust on the floor while not wearing a mask can cause cleaners to catch dangerous viral diseases. All cleaning businesses, whether in-house or outside contractors, should ensure that staff are fully protected. One of the most innovative solutions to rodent infestation is a pest station with sen-sors, an electronic technology that identi-fies when rodents are on the move in a customer’s premises and calls out the pest controllers to deal with them. The sensors send a text message or an e-mail from the customer’s premises to the pest controller when triggered by any pest activity. Before the customer — or the rodents — know about it, the pest control professional is taking care of the problem. This is an important advance for the pest control industry because it means that, instead of making speculative biweekly inspections to find signs of rodents, pest control professionals can wait until they get an e-mail or text message triggered by the rodents, allowing them to provide a more targeted and efficient rodent control service. They also use fewer toxic chemicals because the system tells them where the rodents are. The system is easily installed and acti-vated with no plugs, no wiring and no batteries. It provides constant monitoring of all critical areas with no limits to coverage and real-time alerts to give the customer confidence in the priority response and treatment. Alert data is automatically held on a Structured Query Language (SQL) data-base for transfer to the client’s on-site reporting system or via the Internet to remote systems for review of hot spots or trends analysis. The system is compatible with Google Maps for immediate site identification and provides complete proof of service and response records for full Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) compliance. Insect Control In The Spotlight Various new devices expand the capa-bilities of the established ultraviolet A (UVA) insect light trap technologies and make their presence in restaurants, retail food stores and fast food outlets less obvious. Consumers are increasingly aware that food safety and food protection regulations in many states have been tightened in response to this. Increased ability to control insect infesta-tions without the use of pesticides is the key to reducing the problem and improving public health. Another new design uses patented trans-lucent technology to provide a wider spread of UVA light and attract flying insects from a greater area, providing a significantly increased catch rate. There is one variation of a light trap that seizes hard-to-catch fruit flies. An optional all-new integral ultraviolet C (UVC) lamp — the first of its kind — can even provide protection from airborne pathogens carried by insects caught. CM Jonathan Kitto is the marketing manager at Brandenburg Ltd., the world’s leading manufac-turer of insect light traps. Brandenburg, a company based in England, is currently establish-ing a new facility in the U.S. and researching new ways to control pests without pesticides. For more information on Brandenburg’s new products that were exhibited at the 2010 ISSA/INTERCLEAN North America trade show and are referred to in this article, go to www.b-one.com or e-mail [email protected]. Because rodents often carry diseases, it is crucial that their presence in facilities is quickly detected so they can be eradicated. www.cmmonline.com 39
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