SAN ANTONIO -- There's no such thing as a certainty with COVID-19, but some businesses, organizations, and schools in San Antonio are doing their best to mitigate the risks of people contracting it by using high-tech thermal scanners at their doorways.

Thermal technology is not a new breakthrough, but having to stick your face close to a tiny screen and have it tell you your temperature, and remind you to wear a mask--that's a new development, and could be a preview the future.

"I think this is maybe not just a fit for COVID, maybe it's a fit for the future of fighting against any kind of disease," said Documation Vice President Robby Brown. "We're getting ahead of it and just trying to see if we can really serve the community and allow them to operate in the best ways they can."

Documation is a San Antonio-based technology company which is distributing thermal scanners to businesses and organizations in need. Por Vida Academy happens to be one of them.

"When our administration told us and informed us that we were going virtual and receiving the scanners, that was a plus because it was thinking ahead," said PVA teacher Brian Barnes.

As for the city of Pleasanton, city hall is an open space that gets plenty of essential traffic and will soon be opening their courtroom again. They needed this technology now.

"We wanted to set the standard for everybody and kind of set the example with safety measures that can protect our employees," said Andres Aguirre.

The scanners use an ethernet cable and just have to be plugged in. They can be connected to a computer system to record other data besides temperatures, but nothing more invasive than a picture or time stamp.

More information can be found by visiting mation.com