Insect and rodent pests carry disease organisms on or in their bodies. They can cause damage by chewing electrical wiring and insulation and contaminate and compromise the research environment. Also, there are aesthetic considerations that make pest control important, since most people find insects and rodents repulsive and unacceptable in the workplace.

Traditionally, pest control consisted of the general application of one or more pesticides. However, there has been a movement away from relying solely on pesticides to solve pest problems in response to public concerns over pesticide use, pesticide resistance, and the possibility that pesticide applications may contaminate the work environment and expose staff to pesticide residues.

In order to provide safe, effective pest control that is compatible with the biomedical research environment, the Integrated Pest Management Section, Division of Safety, has implemented Integrated Pest Management (IPM) programs in all NIH design and construction projects and throughout NIH workplaces. Professional entomologists on the staff of the Occupational Safety and Health Branch manage these programs.

The reliance on pesticides as the sole means to correct pest problems is unacceptable in the NIH biomedical research environment. NIH has implemented effective, long-term prevention methods and strategies that work in unison with the building design and its use. Prevention of pest infestation in and around NIH buildings is important to the health and safety program at NIH and contributes to creating a better work and research environment. Pests are dependent upon biotic factors to provide them nourishment and moisture and abiotic factors to provide them harborage and ingress into buildings. Through steps taken proactively during building planning, design, construction, and commissioning, resources for pests can be minimized, making the building less susceptible to pest infestation during its functional life cycle.

Q.1 Sustainability
Q.2 Integrated Pest Management
Q.3 Facility Design Elements
Q.4 Pest Management Consultation, Design Review, and Program Support
Q.5 Pest Management Services During Construction
Q.6. Specific Design Elements
Q.7 Requirements Unique to Animal Facilities

Q.1 Sustainability

Several of the precepts of IPM work in concert with facility sustainability. Energy and water conservation can involve practices that make a facility less attractive to pests. Designing a facility for long-term use aids in pest management since durability and stability of the building infrastructure and systems make it less susceptible to pest ingress and infestation. Pest management and the pest management program function as part of the building, providing specialized services designed for each area of application. IPM programs change with the building and the use of the building. Despite these efforts, pest problems can develop within a building as it ages or is expanded or modified. Doors do not seal properly, gaps form around slabs, landscaping changes, equipment is removed, and new equipment is installed. The feasibility of effective, long-term pest management is often influenced by the flexibility and adaptability of a building to new or expanded use. For example, to change a room designed for nonhuman primate to rodent holding usually will not create pest-related issues. However, to change from rodents to nonhuman primates will result in a room that is difficult to maintain and will create significant challenges to the pest management program.

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Q.2 Integrated Pest Management

Insect and rodent pests such as cockroaches, ants, mice, and rats need food, water, and harborage to survive. The IPM program at the NIH focuses on designing new projects so as not to create conditions that encourage pests and that minimize pesticide applications by reducing the amount of food, water, and harborage available to pests. Practices such as good facility design, excluding pests through sound structural detailing, and proper project construction site sanitation constitute major components of the NIH IPM program.

IPM programs are proactive in preventing pest problems, not reactive to an infestation. IPM programs discourage unnecessary pesticide use and generic prescriptive pesticidal treatments. Each IPM program is specifically designed to meet the individual needs of the area serviced. The success of an IPM program depends on the assistance and cooperation of the management and staff in each facility, particularly so in animal facilities and laboratories.

Improvements in facility design and construction can significantly assist with maintaining good sanitation, housekeeping, and pest prevention. IPM is a safe and effective way to control pests. IPM must be a continuing program in order to manage the environment where pests live and to meet future pest management needs.

Q.2.1 IPM Program Components: The basic components of an IPM program include elements instituted during the design and construction phases as well as operational elements implemented after a facility is occupied. These include:

• Facility Design: Pest problems often can be prevented by the architect/engineer (A/E) taking a proactive approach to designing facilities that do not contribute to the harborage of pests.
• Sanitation/Structural Repairs: Proper sanitation on the construction site, as well as reduction of clutter and pest harborage and performing small repairs that exclude pests, has a significant impact on keeping pests out of buildings during construction.
• Monitoring: Monitoring is the regular surveillance of an area using traps, visual
  inspections, and interviews with staff. Surveys are conducted to determine whether a pest problem exists, the location and size of the pest infestation, and conditions that may contribute to pest problems.
• Communication: Staff cooperation in correcting conditions that contribute to pest problems is essential to the success of an IPM program.
• Record-Keeping: Monitoring data on pest numbers and observations on housekeeping and structural deficiencies are recorded in a logbook in each facility.
• Pest Control Without Pesticides: IPM practices such as pest exclusion, trapping, screening, and caulking are effective, long-term methods of pest prevention. Nonpesticidal pest control practices can be effective and applied with a high degree of safety.
• Pest Control With Pesticides: Pesticides are a small part of an IPM program and are applied using the safest, most effective methods of application, and only where needed.
• Program Evaluation: Monitoring data and observations are periodically summarized and reviewed to evaluate program effectiveness.
• Safety: IPM significantly reduces the use of pesticides and encourages the use of more permanent nonpesticidal control practices. This practice helps minimize the potential of exposure to pesticides by patients, the research environment, and NIH staff.
• Quality Assurance: Technical oversight provides an objective, ongoing evaluation of program activities and effectiveness.
• NIH Integrated Pest Management Section: The NIH Integrated Pest Management Section, Occupational Safety and Health Branch, Division of Safety, manages IPM programs in NIH animal care and laboratory facilities and is involved during the planning, design, and construction phases of new construction and alteration projects. The Project Officer and design team shall involve the IPM Section early during the planning and design process for any project to obtain input on proposed designs from the pest management perspective.

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Q.3 Facility Design Elements

IPM is a comprehensive approach to preventing pests from harboring around, entering, or infesting NIH facilities. This is critical in the research laboratory and animal facility environments but is equally important for all building types that the NIH designs and constructs.

Buildings must be designed and constructed to promote cleaning. This entails employing designs and materials that minimize gaps, voids, and inaccessible spaces. Construction materials must be durable and chosen for the proper application. Since the integrity of the building diminishes over time, gaps, holes, and voids can create areas where debris can accumulate and pests can harbor.

Some of the components of facility design and construction that impact an effective pest prevention program are:

• Overall facility design and construction, including the materials and construction detailing and the equipment and construction processes used to build the facility. Facility components and layout should minimize points of pest ingress and harborage and optimize accessibility for cleaning, sanitation, and pest inspection.
• Building integrity. Closing cracks, crevices, and voids; penetrations through floors, walls, and ceilings; surface protection; and treatment and finishes affect pest activity.
• Landscape design and management.
• Lighting on the site and building exterior.
• Shipping and receiving areas, including the loading dock and storage facilities.
• Personnel entry points.
• Solid waste management and removal.
• Recycling activities.
• Housekeeping and sanitation, throughout the surrounding building area and inside the facility.
• Pest management service implemented during construction.
• Requirements specific to animal facilities (see Animal Research Facilities, Section: Programmatic Goals and Objectives and Section: Design Criteria).
• Staff support areas, including break rooms, locker rooms, and food preparation areas and equipment, as well as administrative and conference space.
• Facility durability and sustainability. Over the life cycle of a facility, changes in the envelope, interior layout and equipment, and animal facility use and program changes have a direct influence on pest activity in and around a facility.

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Q.4 Pest Management Consultation, Design Review, and Program Support

The Project Officer and the A/E shall contact the NIH Division of Safety (DS), Integrated Pest Management Section, during the early planning stages of any design project to ensure that the design addresses all areas relative to pest management. These design areas include:

• Design Concept. If the facility is to contain structural/design components that pose a potential or known pest problem, this should be considered as early as possible in the design phase.
• Facility Fit-Out. Some materials and equipment are undesirable or unacceptable from a pest prevention and control standpoint and should not be used.
• Onsite Consultation. Pest management staff can provide support during site visits and inspection during all phases of planning, design, construction, and renovation.
• Pest Management Services Oversight. All projects must maintain a pest surveillance and control program during all phases of construction. DS must review and approve all IPM services plans and inspect all pest management services delivered by construction contractor personnel to ensure efficacy and IPM program quality.

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Q.5 Pest Management Services During Construction

IPM services for the control of pests are required on all NIH construction sites during all phases of construction. NIH Division 1 Specification Section “Temporary Facilities and Controls” outlines the requirements that must be incorporated into every NIH construction project.

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Q.6. Specific Design Elements

The following elements offer specific design suggestions that can greatly contribute to a successful IPM program. The A/E should incorporate these into the design as applicable.

Q.6.1 Architectural Design: Exterior architectural features, including the develop-ment of the facade and roofing design, must be evaluated with respect to their potential for the occurrence of pests. For example:

• Recessed windows, ledges, flat roofs, roof edges, columns, and so on can provide roosting spots for birds.
• Overhangs or sunshades can be nesting sites for wasps or birds.
• Runoff from the roof can attract and support pests around the building exterior.
• Entranceway overhangs can provide nesting sites for birds and stinging insects.
• Use of hollow metal construction materials, particularly in windows, are potential nesting sites for stinging insects.
• Roof gardens or eating areas will attract pests.
• Roof vents and air intakes can be points of ingress for birds and insects.
• Facades that are recessed and wall-mounted lighting provide nesting sites for birds and stinging insects.
• Elevated planters can become harborage for rodents and accumulate debris and food trash.

These issues can create problems that will have an impact on the use of the building and ongoing maintenance and will be expensive to correct once the building is completed.

Q.6.2 Landscape Design and Management: Landscape planting, for both aesthetic and functional needs, can impact the number and types of pests found around the exterior of the building as well as within the building envelope. For example, dense ground covers such as ivy provide cover and harborage for rodent pests. Ornamental plants such as spirea are attractive to certain beetle species that can become a pest indoors. Mulch can provide food for termites, and dense foundation plantings can reduce air circulation around buildings, harbor pests such as wasps, and obstruct pest management survey and control activities. Raised planters or garden beds can be nesting sites for rodents. An open perimeter boundary around the entire facility is recommended. This barrier should be wide enough to facilitate inspections around the building and should be constructed from materials that are durable, do not obstruct grass-cutting or maintenance activities, and prevent encroachment of grasses or weeds around the exterior of the building.

Q.6.3 Lighting: Lights are attractive to insects and to some vertebrates. The type and placement of lights around and in a facility can impact the occurrences of pests and nuisance incidental invaders indoors. Wherever possible, locate lights away from the building, thereby attracting pests away from the building. Lights should not be placed directly over loading dock doors or personnel doors. Lights that are less attractive to insects, such as sodium vapor types, are recommended. The design of the light fixture and the installation of the fixture can provide pest harborage outside a building. Overhead lights with a flat upper surface can provide a nesting or roosting site for birds. The power conduit for the lights must be designed so that it does not provide roosting or nesting sites for nuisance birds.

Q.6.4 Shipping and Receiving, Including the Loading Dock and Storage Facilities: The loading dock is the central point of activity in a building. Most goods and supplies enter or leave through this area. Solid waste is often containerized at the loading dock. According to the amount and duration of activity, the loading can be a point of pest ingress for the following reasons:

• Doors often remain open for extended periods of time.
• Solid waste and recyclables, which are attractive to pests, are containerized and stored at the dock.
• Outside air can be pulled into negative buildings along with pests.
• Proper cleaning and sanitation are often difficult to achieve.
• Because of heavy industrial use of this area, maintenance issues can contribute to pest problems.

The loading dock should provide a buffer between the exterior and the interior of the building. Air screens, specialty doors, plastic strip doors, and electric insect light traps should be used to create a positive barrier to pests.

The loading dock should be considered an extension of the building interior. The materials used to construct the dock should provide durability, ease of cleaning, pest exclusion, and accessibility for pest management services. In addition, the loading dock should have adequate space and lighting for proper marshalling, inspection, and cleaning of materials received and shipped from the building. Solid waste containers should not be stationed
directly in front of overhead doors. Clean deliveries and deliveries of food should not be comingled with waste and “dirty” areas of the dock.

See Animal Research Facilities, Section: Design Criteria, for specific guidelines related to loading docks that directly support an animal facility.

Q.6.5 Personnel Entry Doors: Building doors should be fitted with sweeps and seals that effectively exclude insect and rodent pests. Automatic or self-actuated sweeps are not recommended. Brush-type sweeps, along with bristle material that covers the entire perimeter of the door, are preferred. Doors must be durable and cleanable. Doors for use in an animal care facility must meet special design and construction requirements. See Animal Research Facilities, Section: Design Criteria, for door specification requirements.

Q.6.6 Solid Waste Management, Removal, and Recycling: Management of solid waste and recyclables impacts building design and construction in three ways.

• Temporary storage of materials inside the laboratory
• Marshalling and disposing of waste materials through the building
• Containment and removal of waste from outside the building

Any area designated to hold waste material must be durable, cleanable, and constructed to minimize gaps and voids since they obstruct cleaning efforts and can become a reservoir for spills, debris, and pests. Solid waste containment equipment must be sited to minimize attraction of pests into the facility and to maximize cleaning and sanitation.

Q.6.7 Housekeeping and Sanitation: Proper sanitation is critical to effective pest management in all buildings. All buildings must be equipped with appropriately sized housekeeping closets located throughout the facility to adequately serve its needs. For specific housekeeping closet requirements, see Biomedical Research Laboratories, Section: Space Descriptions, and Animal Research Facilities. These space standards should be applied to housekeeping closets in other building types. Appropriate construction materials help to promote cleaning and sanitation. Improper installation during the fitting-out phase of the building will create long-term obstacles to good sanitation and potentially foster rodent and insect infestation problems.

Q.6.8 Building Integrity: Closing holes, gaps, and voids is important to long-term prevention of pests. The closing of wall, floor, and ceiling penetrations, with the appropriate sealant, must be designed into all projects and performed during construction.

Wall-mounted equipment and fixtures must be sealed when installed. The intent of this sealing is twofold. First, to deny pests, particularly insects, points of ingress and harborage sites in the building. Rodents can be prevented from entering a building by performing thorough sealing of the building envelope. Mice can move through a hole 6 mm or larger, and rats can get through a space 12 mm or larger. Second, to help promote sanitation and housekeeping by making areas easier to routinely clean and minimize the extent that spills may soil or contaminate an area. Caulking and sealing must be applied to all components of a facility, including but not limited to the following elements: building envelope, plumbing, and electrical and the installation of equipment, furnishings, and amenities in the fitting out of the building.

Caulking and sealing are not replacements for good design and construction. It is more desirable not to design and construct gaps, voids, and recesses than it is to seal them after construction. Extensive sealing will add to the long-term operation and maintenance cost of a facility since sealants often must be removed and reapplied numerous times to maintain integrity over time.

Specialized areas or areas designed for unique functions will have additional caulking and sealing requirements. The design team must contact the NIH Integrated Pest Management Section to obtain additional program-specific caulking and sealing information. This information is available in the IPM document Caulking and Sealing Requirements for NIH Animal Facilities.

Q.6.9 Personnel Support: Personnel/staff support areas, such as break rooms, kitchenettes, locker rooms, showers, conference facilities, cafeterias, and vending facilities, must all be designed and constructed to meet the rigorous use to which they will be subjected. Recommendations include:

• Use commercial-grade cabinetry in all break rooms and kitchenettes.
• Install lockers on legs. Do not install lockers on a void base, and if possible, do not recess lockers inside walls. Use open-wire lockers wherever feasible.
• Size kitchens properly for expected use. Use commercial-grade, National Sanitation Foundation-approved kitchen equipment, installed to maximize cleaning, and provide adequate ventilation.
• Do not recess trash or recycling containers inside cabinets or walls.
• Specify durable, highly cleanable finishes that can be sanitized with strong detergents and cleaning products in all vending areas.
• Lockers and locker rooms must be thoroughly caulked and sealed.
• Pay attention to the placement and design of outside eating areas for building staff to minimize attraction of pests into the facility and facilitate waste removal.

Sanitation and housekeeping are the primary issues in all personnel support areas. These areas receive extensive use, often 7 days per week. Areas not adequately designed can become cluttered and dirty, be a source of pests and odors, and present health and housekeeping problems.

The use of proper materials can provide additional safeguards against pest problems. See General Design Guidelines, Section: Architecture, for additional finish requirements to promote sanitation and minimize pest problems.

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Q.7 Requirements Unique to Animal Facilities

Animal facilities present some of the most challenging circumstances to an effective pest management program and the performance of pest management services. Additional care and attention must be paid during all phases of planning, design, and construction of animal facilities.

Some of the components that require specialized design and review by the NIH Integrated Pest Management Section include:

• Building integrity (site design, building envelope, and exterior building lighting).
• Receiving areas. See Animal Research Facilities, Section: Space Descriptions, for loading dock design requirements.
• Interior wall, floor, and ceiling finishes.
• Door types, locations, and materials.
• Wall and door protection design and materials.
• Access panels.
• Caulking and sealing locations and details. Refer to the IPM Section’s document Caulking and Sealing Requirements for NIH Animal Facilities.
• Interior lighting.
• Cagewash design.
• Solid waste disposal, recycling, and storage facilities.
• Floor drains.
• Locker rooms and break rooms.
• Administration areas.

These items must be evaluated and reviewed with respect to the overall program requirements of the entire building, specific animal species, size of the facility, and anticipated future use(s) of the facility.