Reputation Protection Through Rodent Control

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For your customers, reputation is everything. A single rodent sighting can put that reputation in jeopardy. Environmental Health Services, Inc. used pinpointed activity data provided by the ActiveSense® system to keep rodents out of a local university conference center, all while keeping the center’s stellar reputation intact.

This historic building is a center for national and international receptions and conferences. The three-story brick building houses guests on the top floor and serves them with a full-service kitchen and formal dining area. Rooms have built-in wall-mounted air conditioner/air filtration units, which can be entry points for mice. The university does not allow rodenticide or glue traps, so snap traps are used inside each of the more than 50 HVAC units. Service is time-consuming, as an inside cover must be removed before inspection each week. The custom wood covers, designed to match the historic interior room design, are not mouse-proof, and they are heavy and difficult to remove.

Mice had been moderately active throughout the facility, and after a comprehensive exclusion program, the university’s goal was to prevent an infestation from recurring to protect its reputation with notable guests.Environmental Health Services, Inc. (EHS) had provided pest management for other buildings on campus and was invited to make a proposal for the conference center. EHS included the ActiveSense® system as an added level of rodent prevention. EHS had employed ActiveSense successfully on several other campus buildings during a pilot program.

 

“Bobby Corrigan told us about ActiveSense early on and we were able to take part in the pilot program. Now, it’s what we do for clients that no one else is doing. It’s a service advantage for us to provide early detection and prevention.”--John Stellberger, president/entomologist, Environmental Health Services Inc., Norwood, Massachusetts

 

ActiveSense® System Deployed

To help prevent mice from entering the building, one ActiveSense sensor was attached to each snap trap in each of the HVAC units. Snap traps were baited with an attractant. ActiveSense also was used with snap traps inside tamper-resistant rodent stations on the exterior perimeter of the building.

Monitoring and Results

  • ActiveSense alerts are received on mobile phones, and EHS responded within one day, often within a few hours.
  • In the first few months mice were trapped, and each catch event was used to explore the source of the problem and in order to take corrective action as possibleneeded.
  • No mice have been trapped for more than eight months and counting.
  • Routine service has been reduced from every week to check traps and change the lure to every six to eight weeks.
  • The university appreciates the ongoing use of smart technology to help protect its image in this public building.
 
“We included ActiveSense in our program proposal. We said, ‘This is the technology we use, and you need it. No one else is doing this.’ They looked at our proposal and said, ‘You are more expensive, but we like what you do. You do a lot of exclusion. We also had good referrals from others on campus who speak highly of your work.’”--John Stellberger, president/entomologist, Environmental Health Services Inc., Norwood, Massachusetts

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