Our Christopher Piccolo, HEXstream utilities industry specialist, was central to the development of the new HEXaid platform, which streamlines the coordination and management of mutual-aid crews during storm events. Having two decades of experience managing utility operations with Eversource Energy, “Picc” has first-hand knowledge of the challenges of weather and fire crises, and he understands the criticality of efficient outage-restoration.  

Here we chat with Picc to get his perspective on our new platform and the capabilities that HEXaid will deliver to mutual-aid teams as they work to control the chaos of outage events.   

What prompted the creation of HEXaid? 

Picc: HEXaid was created to solve a problem I experienced throughout my years in utility operations; mutual aid onboarding and logistics were always fragmented and reactive. During major storm events, managing outside crews meant juggling spreadsheets, emails, whiteboards and disconnected systems. Onboarding, crew tracking, lodging, food coordination, work packages and communications rarely lived in one place. There was no single source of truth to manage it all. 

When I joined HEXstream and was asked where the industry still had a software gap, the answer was immediate—mutual-aid logistics needed a purpose-built solution designed from an operations perspective. HEXaid brings structure, visibility and coordination to one of the most complex parts of storm response, giving utilities a centralized platform to efficiently manage external resources when it matters most. 

What is your role related to HEXaid?  

Picc: I serve as the product owner for HEXaid. My role is to work closely with our application-development team at HEXstream to ensure the platform meets the real-world functional needs of utility end users. That means translating operational challenges into clear technical requirements and making sure the solution improves efficiency across onboarding, logistics and field coordination. 

Ultimately, every decision we make with HEXaid is grounded in one objective: helping utilities restore power safely and more quickly. If the application does not support crews in the field and the teams coordinating them, then it is not doing its job. My responsibility is to keep the product aligned with that operational reality every step of the way. 

How is the world of outage-response changing?  

Picc: The biggest shift I have seen in outage response is around customer expectations. Today’s customers live in a world where they can order a car, track a package, or watch their food delivery move in real time right from their phones. That same expectation now applies to utilities. Customers want timely, accurate information and visibility into restoration progress, especially during major events. 

For utilities, delivering that level of transparency at scale during a large storm is not simple. Restoration is dynamic and conditions change quickly. HEXaid strengthens situational awareness by giving utilities better visibility into crew deployment, logistics and field progress. This improved operational clarity directly supports clearer, more accurate communication to customers, which is now just as important as the physical restoration work itself. 

Why is this a critical time for smarter solutions regarding mutual aid?  

Picc: The industry can no longer rely on disjointed spreadsheets and paper-based processes, especially as we move deeper into an AI-driven era. Artificial intelligence is only as effective as the data behind it. If crew rosters, lodging assignments, work packages, and resource tracking are inconsistent or manually managed, you cannot generate meaningful insights or automation. Clean, structured, real-time data is the foundation, and HEXaid is the first step in building that foundation. 

With a centralized system in place, the opportunities expand quickly. Automatic roster approvals, optimized crew-work assignments, and coordinated food and lodging logistics can be handled in seconds instead of hours. That reduces the need to scale large logistical teams during major events and allows utilities to focus more resources on restoration itself. Smarter systems ultimately translate to faster, safer power restoration and a more resilient response model for the future. 

What experiences have you had from within a utility that provide you insight on mutual aid?  

Picc: Throughout my career, I have worked countless storm and emergency-response events from multiple roles inside a utility. I have served as a damage assessor, logistics lead, field operations supervisor, control room operations supervisor, operations section chief, and planning-section chief. I was directly involved in major events such as the 2008 New Hampshire ice storm, Hurricane Irene in 2011, Superstorm Sandy in 2012, and Tropical Storm Isaias in 2020. I also led numerous remote-management teams supporting other utilities during large-scale events. Those experiences gave me a full view of mutual aid from the field, the control room, and the command structure. 

Seeing mutual aid from all those angles has shown me what works and what does not. Large events expose gaps quickly, especially around onboarding, logistics coordination, and communication. The most important part of storm response is continuous improvement. Post-event reviews are critical. If you are not capturing lessons learned and adjusting processes before the next storm, you are falling behind. Those real-world experiences are what shape my perspective on how mutual aid should be managed and why better tools are needed. 

What feature of HEXaid is your favorite? 

Picc: My favorite feature of HEXaid is the ability for crews to receive work packages directly on their mobile devices. Giving outside resources direct access to the information they need to perform their work efficiently has always been a challenge. In the past, external crews often had limited or no access to internally hosted systems due to IT security barriers. That meant printed packets, manual updates, and constant back-and-forth communication, which slowed everything down. 

With HEXaid, a single secure integration to the utility’s Outage Management System allows data to flow safely through one controlled platform. Crews can access accurate, up-to-date work information without compromising internal systems. That improves efficiency in the field, reduces administrative overhead, and ultimately helps accelerate restoration when time matters most. 

What most excites you about all of this?  

Picc: What excites me most about the HEXaid platform is the level of visibility it brings to both contractors and utilities. During major events, simply knowing where crews are, what they are assigned to, and what resources they need can dramatically improve efficiency and accountability. That kind of real-time awareness has traditionally been difficult to maintain, especially when managing large volumes of outside resources. 

With HEXaid, everyone has access to the right information at the right time. Field crews, logistics teams, and leadership are all working from the same operational picture. That shared visibility reduces confusion, eliminates duplicate efforts, and enables decisions to be made faster and with greater confidence, which ultimately supports quicker and safer power restoration. 

WANT MORE? CLICK HERE TO CONNECT WITH PICC TO LEARN HOW HEXAID CAN HELP YOU OVERCOME YOUR NEXT OUTAGE EVENT.