Charles M. Trout

Charles “Charlie” Trout began his electrical career in 1941 as an electrician helper maintaining diesel electric locomotives for the Pennsylvania Railroad. In 1952, he became a member of Local Union 134 IBEW in Chicago, Illinois, and began work as a journeyman electrician for an electrical contractor.

Charlie has been a member of the International Association of Electrical Inspectors for over 40 years. He has also been a member of the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA) since 1980 and has sat on its Codes and Standards Committee since 1989. He represented NECA on National Electrical Code Making Panels No. 6 and No. 18 and was Chairman of Code-Making Panel No. 12 for twelve years. In addition, Charlie served as President and CEO of Main Electric Company of Chicago for twenty years and holds an Electrical Contractors License and Supervising Electricians License in Chicago.

Charlie is well known for his classes and seminars for the Supervising Electricians Examination and has written several electrician workbooks. He is the author of NECA 230-2003 Electric Motors and Motor Controllers, an American National Standard (ANSI) for selecting, installing, and maintaining electric motors and motor controllers and Electrical Installation and Inspection. Charlie is also the author of NECA’s Code Question of the Day, an online resource for questions about the NEC.