Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

How do we rid our campus of rodents?

Smart technology gives us new ways to address old problems in our homes, places of business, and in public spaces. One great example is a sensor, invisible to the eye, that fits in a waste receptacle and collects valuable data it can then transmit to users—be they facility management, civil engineers, or sanitation departments.

It measures everything from weight and fill level to temperature and landfill diversion. With GPS, it can track whether the receptacle has been moved and the location where it should be returned. The data, both real-time and historical, are used as a planning tool to optimize routes and make significant boosts in efficiencies, including labor costs, time and environmental impact.

The smart technology now features a user-enabled rodent detection mode. It looks for specific patterns in the measurements it records that indicate rodent movement within the container. The data that are collected can be used to uncover specific problem areas with dense rat populations and identify key surrounding contributors, such as discarded foods and litter in overflowing dumpsters, alleyways, restaurant trash cans, and the street. Over time, the data allow users to measure the success of a rat-abatement initiative.

What makes the new feature a huge benefit is that it gets to the infestation’s root causes and does not simply treat the symptoms.

Rats are smart. But this technology is smarter.

This article originally appeared in the College Planning & Management February 2018 issue of Spaces4Learning.

About the Author

Emma Skalka is vice president of Sales and Marketing at Victor Stanley in Dunkirk, MD.

Featured

  • Designing for Every Mind

    Learning environments have the power to shape not just what students know, but who they become. When a school is designed with genuine empathy—for the full range of ways students think, sense, and engage with the world—it becomes more than a building. It becomes a catalyst for growth, confidence, and belonging. That is the animating idea behind neurodiverse design, and it is one that is transforming how more architects and designers are thinking about school design.

  • Surging Demand for Student Housing Fuels Major Campus Investment Opportunities

    University leaders throughout the U.S. are accelerating plans to modernize and expand student housing as enrollment stabilizes and demand for on-campus living rebounds. Recent data from the National Center for Education Statistics indicates that total postsecondary enrollment is projected to grow through the end of the decade, with undergraduate enrollment alone expected to increase by more than 8 percent by 2030.

  • Zurn Elkay Releases 2025 Sustainability Report

    Zurn Elkay Water Solutions recently announced the release of its annual sustainability report, according to a news release. The 2025 report discusses the organization’s efforts to maintain good environmental stewardship and the solutions provided in helping customers meet sustainability goals.

  • Universities Continue to Launch Multimillion-Dollar Campus Transformations

    What makes the current wave of campus development especially noteworthy is its emphasis on multi-use functionality and community integration. Institutions are no longer investing solely in academic or athletic facilities in isolation. Instead, they are creating destinations that blend recreation, health, housing, and event-driven economic activity.