Level 5 – Purpose built
Building designed as a museum, gallery, or archive accompanied by increased planning that integrates policies and features to include pest control with control of other agents of deterioration. Include appropriate elements from previous levels.
Examples
Purposefully designed as a museum, archive, or gallery. Improved enclosure meets preservation requirements. Enhanced commercial construction that provides spaces and features designed to store and display collections.
Plan B
None
Site
Site planning includes perimeter control of neighbouring risks by environmental modification (e.g. creating buffer zones, limiting pooling of water, and pruning dense foliage to lower fire hazard).
Plan B
None
Building
Designed with consideration for pest control such as providing a room to support freezers, controlled atmosphere fumigation, and quarantine needs. Smooth flooring, coved junctions with walls for easy cleaning. Light-coloured finishes and good lighting to aid pest detection. Pest-resistant exterior wall materials and fewer crevices when built in order to lower HVAC system losses and reduce wall moisture issues.
Plan B
Crevices discovered to be housing insects are caulked with appropriate sealant. Exterior window seals are maintained promptly to exclude wall moisture, and improvements are made to seal all exterior doors when flawed installation is discovered or materials fail. Improved HVAC system filtration to “MERV 9” level to eliminate mould spore and pollen transport.
Portable fittings
Intensive use of protective cabinets increases the need for planned visual inspection. Many objects not on display, so there is a delay in finding outbreaks without a planned inspection. Little consideration given to cleaning underneath displays over the long term of a permanent gallery's life. High traffic leads to accumulation of litter – some of which can support pest life. Enclosed exhibits constructed to a level of tightness that excludes insects (gaps of 0.1 – 0.3 mm). Have capacity to treat routine volume of artifacts in walk-in freezers (−25 to −30°C) or controlled atmosphere fumigation.
Plan B
Exhibit techniques that use showcase furniture or permanent diorama constructions are examples of objects that can provide hiding places for pests near areas of high visitor traffic. Consider reducing these long-term hazards for eventual pest colonization by designing for ease of access into the display and into hidden spaces underneath. Periodically clean these enclosures to remove detritus (fibre, dust, food particles, etc.). Promptly remove food garbage, which should be in closed containers and emptied daily, to reduce support for mice.
Procedure
Systematic, detailed inspection for pests. Comprehensive use of adhesive traps for pest detection. Bird proofing of structure. Commercial pest control operator (PCO) to disinfest the on-site restaurant. Permanent cleaning staff and security are not trained in IPM practices. All new acquisitions are subject to quarantine, inspection, and pest eradication processes. International loans of objects must be packaged in materials that support current import/export restrictions designed to limit the spread of wood pests. Only certified wood (heat treated) or exempted wood products used in packaging.
Plan B
In larger institutions, consider using a zoned IPM system to indicate the most vulnerable areas needing special precautions and protection against pests. Visually inspect the most sensitive and valuable objects annually. Give all permanent staff basic IPM training to sensitize them to pest problems and methods of prevention. Elevated degree of storeroom sanitation is recognized as an effective pest-reduction activity. Clean non-traffic areas, including under-shelf spaces in storage rooms, annually.
Prognosis
Sporadic outbreaks associated with non-collection areas and events. Older storage cabinets may continue to show higher incidence of infestation because they are more porous, and because pests live in high-density arrangements of cabinets.
Plan B
Sporadic pest problems occur with new collections and returning loans.
Expected deterioration
Anticipated events show up in a similar time on robust and on soft objects, and within a century on delicate objects
Plan B
Less frequent sporadic pest outbreaks due to early intervention and effective remediation.
CCI Technical Bulletin Nº 29.
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