Stop hunting. Start building your bench.
We train entry-level HVAC, electrical, and plumbing talent like employees, six weeks before they ever clock in as one. You meet people who already showed up, put in the work, and hold the credentials your job sites require.
We do the expensive part.
You get the part you actually need.
Every contractor in San Antonio knows the math. Bringing on a green hire means paying someone to learn safety, tools, terminology, and job-site habits on your clock, on your trucks, in front of your customers. Then some wash out in month two. Tradecraft absorbs that stretch before you ever meet them.
Six weeks on your dime
- ×A senior tech pulled off billable work to supervise and explain the basics.
- ×Safety orientation, hand tools, and terminology taught in the field.
- ×Certification costs and scheduling handled after the hire.
- ×No read on attendance or work ethic until they are already on payroll.
- ×Turnover from people who found out the trade was not for them.
Handled before day one
- ✓Six weeks of full-time, hands-on training on industry-standard equipment.
- ✓OSHA 10 completed for every graduate, plus EPA 608 in the HVAC program.
- ✓Tool handling, safe work practices, and trade vocabulary already in place.
- ✓Six weeks of documented attendance and punctuality you can evaluate.
- ✓Students who invested in their own training and chose this trade on purpose.
Built like a job site.
Not a classroom.
Every day is spent doing, not reading about it. Students train on industry-standard gear and keep a 7:00 AM to 3:30 PM schedule, Monday through Friday, just like a real job site. The habits you want on a crew are the habits we grade on.
Three trades. One standard.
Each program runs six weeks, full time, at our San Antonio campus. Certifications are earned during the program and covered by tuition, so graduates arrive with credentials in hand rather than a promise to get them later.
Electrical
6-week pre-apprentice program
- Residential and commercial wiring practices
- Panel work, terminations, and device installs
- NEC code fundamentals and print reading
- Hand and power tool safety
Plumbing
6-week pre-apprentice program
- Copper, PEX, PVC, and cast iron joining methods
- Rough-in layout and fixture setting
- Drain, waste, vent fundamentals
- Hand and power tool safety
HVAC
6-week pre-apprentice program
- Refrigeration cycle and system diagnostics
- Brazing, evacuation, and charging
- Electrical troubleshooting on units
- Hand and power tool safety
Taught by people who ran the jobs.
Our program directors were not hired out of academia. They came off the trucks, out of the shops, and off the job sites, and they teach the way they were taught. That is why graduates arrive knowing how the work is actually done, and why they take pride in doing it right.
Arnoldo Perez
50+ years in HVAC. EPA Universal 608 Certified. Master Teacher. Arnoldo has seen everything the industry can throw at a tech, and he's here to make sure you're ready for it.
Jim Hubbard
Licensed Master Electrician with 15+ years in residential and commercial work. Previously ran his own electrical contracting business.
Eugene Hernandez
Nearly 30 years in the field. Projects including MD Anderson Cancer Center and the AT&T Center. Eugene brings real-world plumbing experience into the classroom every single day.
We cut everything that doesn't matter.
Traditional trade programs are loaded with filler: general education requirements, electives, administrative padding. We stripped all of it. Every hour a student spends here builds skills you can put to work.
Built for the job site
Designed by working tradespeople, not academics. Every hour maps to work that entry-level crews are actually doing in this market.
Hands on from day one
No months of lectures before touching a tool. Real equipment, real installs, real scenarios starting in the first session.
Certifications included
Tuition covers the certifications commonly required on local job sites. Graduates leave with credentials in hand, not a plan to get them later.
Already self-selected
These are people who invested in their own training and gave up six weeks of full-time hours to be here. Motivation is clear before you interview.
Small cohorts, real attention
Instructors know every student by name and know where each one stands by week two. When you ask about a candidate, you get a straight answer.
A direct line to graduates
Career placement assistance is available to graduates, and partners get a direct channel to the cohort. Employment is not guaranteed by Tradecraft Schools.
Partnership is not just a job posting.
Some partners want to meet graduates. Some want a hand in shaping what gets taught. Pick the lane that fits where your company is right now, and change it whenever you want.
Meet a graduating cohort
Come to campus in the final week, walk the training floor, and talk with students while they are still working. No formality, no fee, no commitment to hire.
Share your open entry-level roles
Send us what you are looking for and we pass it directly to graduates through career placement assistance. You decide who advances and who you hire.
Guest instruct for a day
Bring a piece of equipment, a war story, or a problem your crews hit last week. Students remember the person who showed them something real.
Join the trade advisory council
Sit down with our program directors and tell us what you wish entry-level hires already knew. Curriculum feedback from hiring managers shapes what we teach next.
Sponsor equipment or a lab bay
Put your brand and your gear in front of every student who trains on it. Sponsored labs carry partner recognition on the training floor.
Host a site visit
Let a cohort see your shop, your trucks, and your standards mid-program. Students who have stood on your site show up to an interview already understanding the work.
Four steps. No paperwork maze.
Reach out
Send one message about your company, your trades, and what your crews need. It goes straight to campus leadership.
Tour the campus
Walk the training floor while class is running. See the equipment, meet the directors, and judge the standard yourself.
Meet the cohort
We notify you when a group is finishing and connect you with graduates whose trade and schedule match your openings.
Make the call
You interview, you decide, you hire on your own terms. We stay in touch after, because your feedback shapes the next cohort.
All three trades graduate on the same day.
One trip to campus, every trade in the building. HVAC, electrical, and plumbing cohorts finish together, so a single visit puts you in front of graduates across all three programs instead of scheduling three separate conversations.
Planning a hire around a graduation date? Tell us the trade and timing, and we will put you on the list for that cohort, including a heads-up the week before so you can walk the floor while class is running.
The things contractors ask us first.
Everything you need to know about partnering with Tradecraft.
What does it cost to partner with Tradecraft?
What certifications does a graduate actually hold?
Are these graduates licensed tradespeople?
Does Tradecraft guarantee that a graduate will accept a role?
What wage should we expect to offer?
Can we see attendance or performance information on a candidate?
We are a small shop. Is this worth our time?
Who do we talk to?
Employer inquiries skip the queue.
You are not a prospective student and you should not be routed like one. Partnership conversations go straight to campus leadership.
Dr. Brian Clark
Tours, hiring conversations, advisory council, guest instruction, and sponsorships. If you want to talk about partnering, this is the line.
Tell us what you need
Drop your company name, which of the three trades you hire for, roughly how many entry-level people you bring on in a year, and how soon you need them. We will match you to the next graduating cohort and set up a time to walk the floor.
Come see the training floor
before you judge the graduates.
Walk in while class is running. Watch the work. Meet the directors. Decide for yourself whether these are the people you want on your crew.