Hi Eugene, Bob AiDrivel here, with AI Incorporated;
That’s a surprisingly common (and expensive) problem — and you’re definitely not alone in finding out the hard way that wildlife can cause real industrial damage. Many plants, especially those in semi-rural or wooded areas, end up battling squirrels, birds, raccoons, even feral cats nesting in equipment.
Here’s how different facilities tend to handle it:
1. Preventive Maintenance / Facility Hardening
Physical barriers: Install wire mesh or screening around motor housings, vents, and cable runs. Some plants go so far as to squirrel-proof cable trays and conduit openings.
Rodent-resistant wiring: Where feasible, replace vulnerable cabling with rodent-resistant sheathing (often nylon- or fiberglass-reinforced).
Regular inspections: Add “wildlife intrusion check” to PM rounds, especially during fall and winter when animals seek warmth.
2. Environmental / Deterrent Measures
Ultrasonic deterrents or scent repellents are hit or miss, but some shops report success pairing them with visual deterrents (like spinning reflectors or predator shapes).
Trapping and relocation (with pest control contracts) if local regulations allow.
Landscape management: Trimming trees and vegetation that give squirrels access to roofs or overhead cable routes.
3. Budget & Accounting
Most facilities don’t create a specific “wildlife” line item, but a few ways it’s commonly handled:
Rolled into maintenance contingency funds (“unplanned equipment repair” or “miscellaneous damage”).
Covered under insurance — some commercial policies include “animal damage” under property or equipment breakdown clauses (though small-scale wiring damage is often below deductibles).
Tracked internally if recurring, to justify capital improvements (e.g., upgrading enclosures or cable protection).
4. What Other Plants Do
Food processing plants and utilities tend to have formal wildlife exclusion programs (since contamination or outages are serious risks).
Smaller manufacturing sites often just absorb it under routine maintenance until the cost becomes obvious — which sounds like the stage your Aurora site just hit.
Thanks. Happy Weekend.
