About · Launching July 31, 2026
The buddy at the kitchen table.
Trade Code Solutions exists because there is no greater feeling than helping a friend pass the exam that’s been standing between him and his family’s future. We’re building the company we wish we’d had — one membership that handles courses, prep, reciprocity, and renewals end-to-end.
In Fredrick’s own voice
How TCS started
My path as an electrician started as an apprentice. After about 18 months in the trade I attended a 2-year accelerated apprenticeship program. Then I studied with a good friend of mine for three weeks straight every night with practice tests for the City of Austin Journeyman Electrician exam. Back then the state didn’t have TDLR — the municipalities administered their exams independently, some using the SBCCI test (Dallas and Fort Worth).
After studying for three weeks straight I passed the Austin Journeyman exam — which was a closed-book exam. That allowed me to have an opportunity to be a superintendent and start building jobs on my own. Huge in the learning experience as a field electrician, in the growth of my leadership as an electrical professional.
After being in the field as a superintendent I was given the opportunity to come into the office as a service sales manager. Hated the job but was grateful for the experience — estimating software, project management, customer relationship management.
That led to my next opportunity in ground-up construction project management — through my education and exposure to the dynamic world of unit tracking, earned-revenue management, scope management, RFI-to-specification, schedule, and quality assurance / quality control procedures. This electrical subcontracting operational management led me to this amazing opportunity to pursue a passion of mine — helping electricians get their licenses and advance their careers and bless their families.
Ever since getting my Master Electrician license in Texas I have helped friends of mine in the trade get their journeyman and master electrician licenses. I have to tell you — there is no greater feeling than when a buddy has spent so many nights and weekends trying to pass the exam, that standing between them and really taking care of their families is pretty humbling, and makes me extremely grateful.
That is why I want to help others get their licenses and ultimately manage their opportunities to reciprocate their opportunities in the trade and bless their families.
— Fredrick McHugh, Founder
The exam stands between an electrician and his family’s future. I’ve been the buddy on both sides of that table — the one studying, and the one helping a friend pass. There is no greater feeling than helping someone close that gap.
Career
The road to TCS
Eight phases. Real time in the field, the office, and the license-management trenches. Every step is the credibility behind the courses TCS ships.
- 1
Apprentice
About 18 months in the field, learning the trade hands-on.
- 2
2-year accelerated apprenticeship
Formal program. Technical foundation, code mastery.
- 3
Austin Journeyman exam (closed-book)
Three weeks straight, every night, with a buddy and practice tests. Back then the state didn't have TDLR — Austin ran its own exam, Dallas and Fort Worth used the SBCCI test.
- 4
Superintendent
Started building jobs on his own. Crew leadership, project flow, schedule management.
- 5
Service Sales Manager
Hated the job. Grateful for the experience: estimating software, project management, customer relationships.
- 6
Ground-up construction PM
The full operations stack — unit tracking, earned-revenue management, scope management, RFI-to-spec, schedule, QA/QC.
- 7
Texas Master Electrician + 20+ states
The credential stack, earned state by state, that became the foundation for the reciprocity engine.
- 8
Founded Trade Code Solutions
Productizing the kitchen-table-with-a-buddy model so the next electrician doesn't have to figure it out alone.
Why TCS knows Texas reciprocity cold
Pre-TDLR. Pre-statewide.
Fredrick took his Journeyman exam back when Texas didn’t even have a statewide electrician licensing body. Each city ran its own. Austin’s was closed-book. Dallas and Fort Worth used the SBCCI test. TDLR centralization came later. That firsthand history is the reason TCS’s reciprocity engine actually works for older electricians and out-of-state transitions — not just the post-2003 patterns most CE vendors stop at.
Available now or launching by July 31, 2026
What’s ready when you are
Every product below is authored in-house from the published standard. We don’t outsource training, and we don’t recycle pre-cycle content.
- NEC Practice TestsPSI-format pool, 90-day max access.
- NFPA 70E Electrical SafetyCert + 3-year cycle renewal.
- NEC Journeyman PrepBundled with practice tests.
- NEC Master PrepCalculations, special-occupancy depth.
- NASCLA Business + LawFederal core + state overlays for 17+ states.
- OSHA 1926 Construction Safety11 Subpart-aligned modules.
- State CEU bundlesTX/FL/WA/UT/OH/OK provider approvals pending.
Plus the reciprocity engine (live for all 50 states + DC) and License Management subscription tiers from solo electrician through enterprise.
Want a buddy in your corner?
Pick a course, run the reciprocity check, or pull up a chair on a license-management plan. We’ll be the one with the test booklet open at the kitchen table.