| Spot, or partial, heat treatment of a selected area of the facility
can effectively control the stored product pest population while the
rest of activities around the treated area continue uninterrupted.
Facility staff can enter the treated area with trained TEMP-AIR
personnel to see the effectiveness of the treatment. This is in stark
contrast to chemical fumigation, which requires extensive sealing and
evacuation of personnel within and from surrounding areas of the
facility and also requires notification to local authorities. The decision to spot treat an area may be based on two main factors: - High
or significant insect activity or trap catch as indicated by insect
detection and monitoring devices like pheromone baited flight traps,
dome traps, or other similar devices.
- Inspections for insect activity by sanitation/quality control crew.
Spot treatment can be a cost effective option for various scenarios at
a food processing plant. Thermal Remediation® from TEMP-AIR has
performed spot heat treatments in diversified segments of the food
industry including flour mills, bakeries, and baby food plants.
Typically, the areas that are frequently selected for spot heat
treatment are: | | | 
Loading Dock Spot Treatment 
Fans and Duct in Partitioned Area
|
- Loading & unloading areas: These areas consist of storage
structures (bin/silos), elevator pits below ground level, and systems
of conveyance (flat belt, screw auger, bucket elevator etc.). These
areas can be major source of infestation as the immature stages of
insects (eggs, larvae, and pupae) can overwinter in these areas and
come back as the temperature gets warmer during the summer.
- Plant
or section of plant housed within a larger structure: Processing plants
with equipment are sometimes housed in a larger building or as a part
of packaging area. In such cases only the processing plant can be
heat-treated.
- Bin or silo room inside the processing or
packaging area: These are generally metal bins that store or transfer
ingredients for processing. These bins/silos can be effectively heat-treated in rotation when they become available during the processing or production cycle.
- Processing
or packaging machines: Processing or packaging machines with conveying
equipment are sometimes housed in a larger packaging area or a
warehouse. The area with machines and equipment can be easily
partitioned off using a plastic sheet or tarp to perform the heat
treatment.
- Vacuum/ventilation room. These are the areas
that collect dust, dockage, spillage, and rejects from processing and
packaging areas and are a good food source and harborage for insects.
The area can be effectively heat-treated while the rest of the plant is
in operation.
- Other areas unique to each facility.
|
Process And Assessment For Spot Treatment:
A spot treatment is essentially a scaled-down version of a full plant heat treatment. The same positive pressurization process is used for spot treatments with targeted temperatures greater than 120°F for the effective kill of all life stages of insects. Since only selected areas are heat treated, it is necessary to partition off the area using a suitable material (plastic/polythene sheets or tarp) to contain the heat. A perimeter treatment along the partition may be done using a residual chemical spray or dusting diatomaceous earth.
The assessment of the site for spot treatment depends on the size (area/volume) of the area to be heat-treated. Small-scale spot treatments may not require a site visit if the required information can be provided electronically. For large-scale spot treatments, the procedure followed is the same as full-scale heat treatments.
Service, Training, And Heat-It Yourself Approach:
TEMP-AIR typically performs the spot heat treatment service for the first time and may train personnel to perform subsequent heat treatments in-house. The heat-it-yourself approach includes training on the use of equipment (whether equipment is purchased or rented from TEMP-AIR) airflow management, and monitoring temperatures for a successful heat treatment.
We offer a comprehensive hands-on training program at our facility for in-house heat treatments. Renting or buying equipment to perform in-house heat treatment also gives the flexibility to heat treat areas as the need arises in addition to cost-savings. We also invite experts from universities to our hands-on training programs to speak on the art and science of heat treatment and the IPM perspective.
