Aertssen Group Finds Success Hiring Veterans Through DOD SkillBridge Program

July 8, 2025

Rincon, GA – Aertssen Group is strengthening its team and building a strong pipeline of talent at its Rincon facility by connecting with exiting military service members through the Department of Defense (DOD) SkillBridge program. The Effingham County Industrial Development Authority (ECIDA) is excited to see companies like Aertssen successfully using this program to grow their workforce and create career opportunities for veterans.

Through SkillBridge, military service members spend their final 180 days of service interning with private sector employers while continuing to receive military pay and benefits. For Aertssen, the program has created an opportunity to strengthen its supply chain and operations teams with highly trained, motivated individuals.

One recent success story is Tanner Scroggins, a transportation officer in the Army Logistics Corps who was introduced to Aertssen through a mutual contact. While serving at Hunter Army Air Field in Savannah, Tanner approached Aertssen about an internship opportunity—and quickly found the company’s innovation-driven culture to be a perfect fit.

“In the Army, we do a lot of things manually because you have to have redundancy in a battlefield environment. At Aertssen, I immediately was drawn to the implementation of technology and data to support operations,” said Tanner.

Throughout his internship, Tanner gained hands-on experience in multiple areas of Aertssen’s day-to-day supply chain operations, including driving forklifts, working on loading docks and assembly lines, and contributing to business intelligence projects that leveraged his leadership and project management skills.

“Tanner was quite curious and inquisitive on all different kinds of topics, especially with all the technology that we have,” said Wouter Clissen, general manager of Aertssen Group’s Rincon facility.

After exiting the Army as a captain in April 2025, Tanner transitioned into a full-time role at Aertssen as a business analyst, helping to bridge IT and operations teams and improve process efficiency.

“My position is technically not a leadership position, but in many ways I’m still able to leverage the leadership qualities and attributes that I grew into over my time in the military,” said Tanner.

Wouter shared that Aertssen’s experience with Tanner and SkillBridge has been overwhelmingly positive and highlighted the benefits of hiring veterans.

“One of the advantages is they know how to work. They also have some leadership skills depending on what their rank was,” said Wouter. “It gives us a very good solid base to grow further and to nurture that capability. If someone is exiting the Army in a similar situation to Tanner, we are certainly not saying no to going through that process again.”

The ECIDA applauds companies like Aertssen Group for helping build a stronger workforce through programs like SkillBridge.

“Aertssen’s success with the SkillBridge program is a great example of how investing in military talent strengthens companies and communities,” said Brandt Herndon, CEO of the Effingham County Industrial Development Authority. “We are proud to see businesses in Effingham County leading the way in creating career pathways for veterans and building a strong future workforce.”

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