Executive Housekeeping Today - June 2008 - (Page 26)

Bed BugS (continued from page 11) Feeling Healthy by Lauren Riggs Most employers want to look at data and see increased employee productivity. There are a number of standard ways to boost employee productivity, including technology upgrades, recognition for jobs well done, and adequate compensation. As flu season approaches each year, we start to recognize another potential productivity factor—occupant health. Occupant health is affected by indoor air quality, stress levels, overall cleanliness of the building, and a variety of other factors. Positively changing the factors that enter into occupant and building health safety will help increase productivity. Occupant comfort is a key element of employee health safety. The term “occupant comfort” encompasses the air occupants breathe, the lighting, the temperature, and the control that occupants have over their environment. All of these things contribute to a healthy building environment. To maintain adequate health safety in your building, consider allowing occupants access to operable windows, thermostats, and personal lighting. However, the easiest step to maintaining a healthy indoor environment is creating and maintaining an adequate Green cleaning plan. Create a Green cleaning plan that addresses both the how and the what. Stipulate the use of low volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and antimicrobial cleaning products, and allow occupants access to environmentally-friendly, all-purpose cleaners for their work spaces. Combine fresh air, sunlight, and a clean work area to reduce occupant’s risk of catching colds and exasperating allergies. A healthy environment is a productive environment. ings in much the same way heat is used to pasteurize milk and kill bacteria in wine. The heat treatment process has been successfully used against insect infestations such as bed bugs and termites, mold and fungi, bacteria and viruses, and to improve indoor air quality by accelerating the off-gassing of odors and toxins. Doctors have also prescribed the process to purify and cleanse the structures for asthma patients. A recent U.C. Berkeley study, headed by Vernard Lewis, Ph.D., a research entomologist, tested the efficacy of this heat process on adult bed bugs and their eggs by heating a single, ranch-style house in California. Infrared heaters and heat exchangers were tested in different sections of the house and sensors monitored temperature continuously. Bed bugs were put inside wall cavities, cabinets, and between mattresses and box springs. The study noted that the use of infrared heaters to treat bed bugs shows “greatest promise when used for structures where they can be set up overnight and dismantled and removed the morning after treatment. Hotels, schools, day care centers, office buildings, vacation homes, and homeowners that are not opposed to moving out for the night would all be potential beneficiaries of this technology.” Unlike fumigation, which is applied only to entire structures, the heat treatment process is highly effective for a localized area or whole structure treatments, including infestations confined to a single hotel room, condo, or apartment. Unlike fumigation, no chemicals are involved, with no odor, and no move out is required if completed in a single day. While non-chemical, some pest professionals choose to use the heat treatment process and dust with a chemical desiccant. The heat process effectively destroys insects and their eggs, and they won’t develop a resistance to it as they do with chemicals. The heat effectively destroys the insects and their eggs, which won’t develop a resistance to it as they do with chemicals. Since heat can achieve lethal levels inside mattresses, pillows, wall voids, books, and all contents of a given room or structure, the homeowner or hotel or property owner doesn’t need to completely remove and replace all the furnishings, drapes, carpets, or mattresses, resulting in less cost disruption. For hotels or property owners sensitive to the social stigma of bed bugs, what’s especially attractive about the heat treatment process is its speed and unobtrusiveness. Since the new infrared heaters fit five on a cart, they can be discreetly brought up an elevator and into affected rooms without disturbing guests or announcing there’s a problem. Taken off the cart, the infrared heaters unfold and plug into electric outlets, and are built for stability with an automatic safety shut off if tipped. Previously, such heat treatment was unavailable in high-rise structures because propane or hydrocarbon fuels were not allowed in them. W Del Williams is a technical writer based in Torrance, California, and holds a M.A. in English from C.S.U. Dominguez Hills. For more information about the ThermaPure® heat treatment process, call Dave Hedman at 866-665-3432 or visit the Web site at www.thermapure.com. W Lauren Riggs is Coordinator for the LEED Market Department at the U.S. Green Building Council. She may be reached at lriggs@usgbc.org. 26 Executive Housekeeping Today/June 2008 http://www.thermapure.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Executive Housekeeping Today - June 2008

Executive Housekeeping Today - June 2008 Contents Executive Corner The Fundamentals of Safety Man vs. Machine: Equipment Safety in Professional Cleaning Operations Frugal Housekeeper Planning for Disaster Eliminating Bed Bugs 2008 Candidate Information Executive Profile IHW Product Information The Green Scene Spring Board Briefing 2008 Call to Convention 2008 Convention Information USGBC Green Tip Product Highlights New Members Joint IEHA/ISSA Members CEH/REH Members Advertisers' Index Calendar of Events Inside I.E.H.A. What I.E.H.A. Has Done for Me

Executive Housekeeping Today - June 2008

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