Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is an effective and environmentally sensitive approach to pest management that uses a combination of common-sense practices. This approach is especially beneficial in pest control for businesses, where maintaining a safe and pest-free environment is critical for operations.
By using the life cycle of pests and their interaction with the environment, Ehrlich can judicially apply pesticides in a manner least hazardous to people, property and the environment.
There are four main components of Integrated Pest Management:
Ehrlich works with their customers to understand when pests are a problem - each customer segment is different. We help pinpoint at which pest populations or environmental conditions indicate that pest control action must be taken. A single pest doesn’t always mean control is needed!
Your Ehrlich Technician will make recommendations based on a variety of factors, such as:
The pest species involved and its appearance
Individual tolerance
The environment
The type of business or structure
The Ehrlich approach to monitoring and identifying pests includes: having educated technicians on staff, accurate pest identifications, proper inspections, monitoring devices and client participation.
Client participation is an important part of a successful pest management program. We provide our commercial accounts with a pest sighting logbook on site to help keep track of activity.
In addition, we encourage our customers to look for:
Pest(s) evidence
Pest-conducive conditions
Areas with moisture, heat, humidity
Food or water
Pest harborage (interior/exterior, trash areas, drains, building perimeter-weeds and debris,)
Pest entry points(doors, loading docks)
There are several methods from sanitation to mechanical trapping devices that help prevent pest from becoming a threat and lowering the risk of developing into an infestation.
Practicing good sanitation eliminates food, water, harborage and concealed routes of movement for pests. Sanitation is assessed at every inspection---in both the interior and exterior of the facility.
Any deficiencies in sanitation are documented and followed by recommendations on how to improve the situation.
Another integral part of IPM is exclusion which limits pest access to the inside of a facility. Since the majority of insects enter into buildings from the outside, sealing holes and gaps, replacing screens and repairing defects around entryways, pipes, drains and other structures will exclude pests out.
Lastly, Mechanical Trapping Devices are a preventative approach to intercept invading pests. They capture flying/crawling insects and rodent like rats and mice. Included in our trapping devices are glue traps, rodent multi-catch devices and insect light traps.
Ehrlich’s IPM program then evaluates the proper control method both for effectiveness and risk.
Physical - This is the manipulation of an environmental condition to make it unfavorable for a pest to thrive. Environmental conditions that can be manipulated include relative humidity, light and temperature. Examples of physical control tactics or devices include the use of dehumidifiers, less-attractive light bulbs and heat treatments.
Mechanical - Many of the same techniques or devices are used in pest prevention, such as glue traps and insect light traps. Mechanical control also includes using items such as vacuum cleaners and spider / cobweb brushes.
Chemical - Pesticides are important and necessary part of IPM, however the goal of IPM programs is to reduce the amount of pesticides used. When necessary, we make highly targeted applications, and always read and follow all pesticide label directions to ensure the application does not harm people, pets or the environment.
Ehrlich Integrated Pest Management programs are continuously evaluated to monitor pest levels and to keep customers informed on sanitation in order to prevent new pest problems.
In addition to monitoring practices, we provide thorough documentation of pest activity and any pesticide application used during a service visit.
Please call us toll free at 800-837-5520 or contact us online to arrange a FREE pest inspection or to learn more about how your facility can benefit from Ehrlich’s Integrated Pest Management approach.
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