Hiring a Pest Management Firm
AN IPM Contract
To ensure integrated pest management (IPM) services, issue a comprehensive request for proposals. Applicants who are not proposing IPM programs (but are the lowest bidders) can be rejected.
Here are a few examples of contract language and RFPs:
StopPests's Sample RFP
bed bug specific RFP from Bed Bug Central
Dini Miller at Virginia Tech's Assessment-Based Model Contract for German Cockroach Elimination
Massachusetts Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Toolkit: Self-ASsessment Checklist and Resources for Procurement Staff, Managers, and Owners of Affordable Housing from the Massachusetts Department of Health
Three programs that credential pest management firms on professionalism and IPM service are
- GreenShield Certified
- QualityPro companies
- EcoWise Certified (California only)
- Technicians that are ACE or BCE certified
Make Sure Bids Demonstrate IPM
Make sure procurement staff understand IPM. Don't be distracted by the term "green." At a minimum, an IPM program must involve:
- Inspection and monitoring in every unit at least once a year.
- Identification of pests before treating, to target control.
- Establishment of threshold levels. The time spent in a unit and any management methods should be relative to the level of infestation.
- Employment of two or more control measures (which may be cultural, mechanical, biological, or chemical). Relying on pesticides is never IPM.
- Evaluation of effectiveness. The pest management professional should keep unit-specific records for every inspection and service so that the IPM program can be tracked, evaluated for effectiveness, and changed, if needed.
