Disinsection training partnership increases business prospects
Some out-of-the box thinking between a leading professional pest control product manufacturer and an aircraft cleaning company has helped to secure a contract with a major airline.
Flightcare Multiservices UK Ltd, the airline services company, covering 22 airports in the UK & Ireland, were approached to tender to clean the interiors of the airline and included in this contract was the disinsection (treatment with insecticides) of aircraft cabins.
In order to win the tender, the company had to prove competency with one of the only granular broad spectrum insecticides currently available - K-Othrine® WG250 (deltamethrin) from Envu. The product distributors would only supply the company with the product on the condition that anyone applying it is fully trained.
“We approached Envu about their K-Othrine® WG250 product and spoke to Richard Moseley, the technical manager from the Pest Solutions Team,” says Glyn Richards, quality and training manager at Flightcare Multiservices UK Ltd. “He was fantastic and agreed to come and train a number of Flightcare staff, over a number of days throughout the UK, and Envu has issued certificates to trained individuals so that we can authenticate their status as qualified personnel.
“This training meant that the distributers, Barrettine, would release the product to us and this was crucial in winning the aircraft cleaning contract,” says Glyn. “The team is now being trained in everything from dilution rates to best practice techniques in application and not only is this working extremely well with the airline, we are now being approached by a number of airlines who are interested in the same service.”
Richard Moseley is clear that training professionals to apply K-Othrine® WG250 is favoured by the Pest Solutions Team because it ensures that the product is stewarded and applied responsibly. “I can be 100% sure that those I train are in no doubt about best practice application measures with this product.
“And this training couldn’t come at a more crucial time, with a number of broad spectrum insecticides being discontinued - K-Othrine® WG250 will continue to stay on the market, but we need to ensure it’s used responsibly. There’s also the matter of viruses spread by insects such as the Zika virus - spread by the Aedes species mosquito. The residual activity of the product means that mosquitos touching the surface of any interior surface on the cabin will be treated.”
K-Othrine® WG250 is a water dispersible broad spectrum insecticide with up to 12 weeks residual activity. “It has a wide label permittance and can control a vast number of public hygiene insect pests, including black ants, bed bugs, fleas, earwigs, cockroaches, flies and mosquitoes,” says Richard.
The fact that the product is packaged as a granule formulation makes the process of moving around the airport much easier from a security point of view. It can be moved through security with no problems.
Richard Moseley says Envu is pleased to be working with Flightcare Multiservices UK Ltd. “Teaming up with them is a great example of how Envu has worked with a large company to support and enhance the company’s profile. It’s one of the only company’s in the UK to provide aircraft disinsection, and using our product with this training really sets Flightcare Multiservices UK Ltd apart.”
“The real beauty of the product is that it’s the only granular formulation on the market. The active is in a granular carrier, so unlike other products, where the active is in a liquid form, any spillage won’t absorb into the skin, and it’s easy to manage and control,” he says.
The granules are mixed with water using a specific applicator called an Ezidoser, which measures exactly the right amount of K-Othrine® WG250 granules (0.5g) to mix with 1 litre of water. This will treat 20m2.
“If you mix an insecticide today and use it in three weeks’ time, its efficacy will be drastically reduced, this is not good practise, or recommended,” says Richard. “Mixing the correct amount is very important as it also means that you effectively save on waste, because hazardous liquid waste is some of the most expensive waste to get rid of.
“The packaging is small, not taking up much room, so it’s easy to transport. And this is equally important when thinking about waste, because the disposal cost is low due to the 40g bottle size,” says Richard.
Envu endeavors to support and advise their customers where they can. If you have any questions on products or industry changes, get in touch with the Envu team on 00800 1214 9451 or pestcontrolexpert@bayercropscience.com.