“Rivian details actions taken after reports of bugs found in manufacturing plant,” reads the hedline by Illinois-based news site 25 News. Illinois is home to the town of Normal, which houses the former Mitsubishi plant that Rivian is using to build its R1T pickup and R1S SUV. The article begins by stating that forklifts at the manufacturing plant have reportedly been found to have bedbugs. From the news story’s discussion with Rivian spokesperson Zach Dietmeier: Illinois-based news site The Pantagraph has a photo of a forklift with a plastic cover over its seat, and some quotes from employees: Out of an abundance of caution, all the forklifts in the affected area have been quarantined and treated. As a preventative measure, we are also treating all others forklifts and tuggers this weekend. As a preventative measure, we have treated the transportation shuttles. (There have been no signs of bugs in the shuttles.) Although we have found no bugs in the warehouses, all warehouse spaces will be treated by the end of the week as a preventative measure. The pesticide used to eradicate the bugs is 100% effective and safe for people. This use has gone through our formal chemical approval process. I will admit that I’m a bit confused on how the forklifts got involved in all this. I mean, aren’t most forklift seats typically foam covered in some kind of plastic/vinyl? Do bedbugs hide in that? [Editor’s Note: This is the part that really got me: what, exactly are these bedbugs hiding in? I’ve been around forklifts plenty (I do have a social life, you know) and they may be the least plush vehicles I can think of this side of a rusty tractor with one of those metal seats that looks like a collander. Does Rivian have special forklift seat covers that look like this?:
..because that’s the only way I can imagine this happening. – JT] The quarantined forklifts (again, it feels weird typing that) are apparently only limited to part of the facility, though it could be a big deal if the end up in production vehicles. And, it’s worth noting that Rivian has yet to admit to having found any bedbugs. Bedbugs are no joke. Back when I lived on the east side of Detroit in West Village, I had to live with some fellow Chrysler engineers while my apartment was fumigated. After I moved back in, bedbugs would wait until I fell asleep, then crawl out of the baseboards, along the floor, up the bedframe, over my covers, and right down my shirt, biting me and leaving me with marks in the morning. By the time I woke up, the bastards were nowhere in sight (save for an occasional one I rolled over). That’s what makes bedbugs so horrible — their stealth. It’s like a ghost is sucking your blood while you sleep, and it can have deep psychological effects. I was forced to move away. I never did get my safety deposit back, but I didn’t care. I was desperate. I needed out. Anyway, bugs are just a part of managing any big facility, especially one that is occupied by lots of people. Bedbugs tend to be a huge problem in inner-city homes; I really feel for the folks who live there, and as for whatever’s going on in Normal, Illinois — I just hope whatever the heck this is gets solved so people don’t have to deal with what I dealt with. It’s rough. To their credit, pest species of cockroaches eat bedbug eggs. So they’re not entirely useless. I’ve seen some really bad roach infestations at peoples’ homes, but those who had roach infestations NEVER had a bedbug problem. I’ve seen bedbugs at an office I used to work at. I’ve also seen them at hotels. They get around. You know, genetic engineering has gotten rather cheap to perform as a hobby. I’d LOVE to try to make these bastards able to fly. You’d NEVER get rid of them if you gave them wings so they could fly. A new plague to infest civilization! Mwa-ha-ha-haaaaaa. I hope Rivian is willing to also treat the affected workers’ homes, should that be necessary. Those little fuckers are an absolute bitch to eradicate. Where do you think they came from in the first place? Probably not from the forklift factory. I have never come across bedbugs but they would get the same treatment as mosquitoes: no mercy whatsoever. They suck blood = vampires = undead. Terminating them is not killing, they are previously deceased. Judging by the comments about how hard/verging on the impossible to kill they are only proves my point. I’m curious to know what they used, because AFAIK the only treatment that’s 100% effective and safe for people is heat. DDT works, or at least it used to before bedbugs evolved resistance, but no pesticide available today will kill bedbug eggs even if it gets the bugs themselves. And they don’t care about plush, they just live on your mattress because that’s where YOU are. They will happily live on a steel tractor seat if that’s their chance to bite your ass. I really hate bedbugs, and I hate that my life has led me to know so much about them. That or I’m too much of a desk warrior to know about what sort of official safety review procedures factories have :). https://www.bedbugsupply.com/gentrol-igr-concentrate.html My wife was not nearly as excited as I was. Also, explaining what the hell a Rivian is was not easy.
