Get the tools you need to protect the food supply

It’s estimated that rodents contaminate up to 20% of the food supply each year, resulting in significant economic loss for producers. Rodents can also carry over 35 diseases, like salmonella and e. coli, which can infect the general population as well as industry workers.

Using technology in pest control helps keep the food supply safer, and pest control technicians can depend on Bell’s 24/7® iQ®, powered by Bell Sensing Technologies (BST).

The 24/7 iQ is a durable multi-use trap that gives technicians more time to focus on inspections and service, while reducing time spent checking empty traps.

Each trap is made from durable, polycarbonate material and contains an integrated Bluetooth sensor that tracks rodent activity. Once a technician arrives at the account, their smartphone connects to each device to see which ones experienced rodent activity and when. That data is then sent to the BST free online portal, where it’s put into automatically generated reports. Technicians can use these reports to identify hotspots and rodent trends while improving biosecurity at their account.

Additionally, the traps can hold Trapper LTD disposable glue boards for monitoring and fast clean-up.

Make Time for the Important Things

24/7 iQ’s biggest benefit is it respects technicians’ time. To service a traditional trap, a technician needs to walk to it, move anything in the way, bend over, then open it. All of this effort is wasted if the trap is empty.

When this process is scaled up for 200,000-square-foot production facility with traps every 20 to 40 feet, 30 seconds to service each trap quickly adds up to hours. A time study conducted by Bell has shown that a facility set with iQ traps can be serviced approximately 80% faster than one using traditional traps.

This is because a technician using iQ devices can check each trap within 50 - 100 feet with their phone, allowing them to concentrate on the devices rodents actually visited. This means no more wasting time on empty traps. Embracing this technology can also keep technicians out of harm’s way because they won’t have to crawl up ladders or access hard-to-reach places to service a trap that may be empty.

Because technicians are spared unnecessary work, they have more time and energy for the rest of their integrated pest management strategy.

One thing they’ll have more time for is performing a quality inspection, which is the basis for all rodent control. Doing an inspection lets technicians know what species of rodents they’re dealing with, hot spots, and areas where exclusion work needs to be done. It also helps them identify why the account is attractive to rodents in the first place. With food facilities, that reason is obvious: the building is a food-rich environment out of the elements. However, there are many ways to make it less hospitable to rodent intruders.

For example, a technician may see pallets and trash stacked in a corner, which makes excellent rodent harborage. Similarly, if grain is scattered on the floor near a production line, it’s a potential food source for rodents. Both of these areas can easily be cleaned, giving rodents fewer reasons to make the facility their home.

The information that iQ products gather will also help technicians do better exclusion work. For example, if a particular 24/7 iQ is being visited frequently, it may be near a rodent entry point. After inspecting the area, the technician may find a door sweep that needs to be replaced.

Taking Advantage of Tech

The 24/7 iQ’s durable and sleek construction is only half of its power – the free BST portal combines with iQ products level-up a technician’s pest management plan.

Creating an account for the portal is quick and easy – all it takes is four steps. Devices are then added to the account by scanning QR codes using the Bell Sensing app.

As the devices gather data at an account, the automatic reports in the portal paint a picture of how to tackle service efficiently and efficaciously.

Reports show how much bait and what kind of bait is being used, the number of rodent activity events, and more. While these tools don’t tell a technician how they should do their job, they can inform their strategy. Another benefit of the reports is they show the impact the pest control service is making at an account. The reports allow a customer to clearly see the technician’s value as infestations are eliminated.

Stay in the know and protect the food supply by taking advantage of everything the 24/7 iQ has to offer.

For more information on the 24/7 iQ or the entire iQ product line-up, contact your local Bell representative or visit BellSensingTechologies.com.