Washington County Profile

There are many factors that go into making a county a great place to do business, ranging from demographics to good infrastructure. Here’s a snapshot of what Washington County has to offer your growth project.

Demographics and Workforce

Since 1990, the population of Washington County has grown almost four times as fast as the rest of the Milwaukee MSA and more than twice as fast as the state’s growth rate. Along with the rapidly growing population, Washington County’s labor force has grown 1.7% in the last five years, which is almost twice as fast as the rest of the Milwaukee MSA. Since 2001, the County’s labor force has grown 4.8%, which is more than twice the state’s growth rate for that span.

Why Southeast Wisconsin

There are many reasons why Wisconsin is a great place to do business, including:

Wisconsin’s business taxes are among the lowest in the country due to property tax exemptions for manufacturing machinery and equipment, computers and computer equipment, inventories and pollution-control equipment.
Wisconsin provides tax credits for energy used in manufacturing and for R&D expenditures.
Wisconsin’s worker’s compensation rates for most industries consistently rank among the lowest in the country.
Wisconsin electric rates are among the lowest in the country; commercial and industrial water and sewer rates are also among the lowest in the nation.

In addition to the many benefits at the state level that make Wisconsin a smart choice to do business, the Milwaukee region also has great benefits with the backing of seven counties. Through the activities of our regional partner organization (Milwaukee 7), the region generated 8,100 new jobs and an increase of $600 million in capital investment.

Major Employers

Industry leaders, both small and large, national and international, do business in Washington County. The top major non-retail employers in Washington County are:

NAICS Code	Rank	Employer Name	NAICS Title	Number of Employees
323110	1	Quad/Graphics Inc	Commercial lithographic printing	500-999 employees
524126	2	West Bend Mutual Insurance Co	Direct property & casualty insurers	500-999 employees
623110	3	Benevolent Corp Cedar Community	Nursing care facilities	500-999 employees
335211	4	Broan-Nutone LLC	Electric housewares & household fan mfg.	500-999 employees
621111	5	West Bend Clinic Inc	Offices of physicians, except mental health	500-999 employees
622110	6	Saint Joseph’s Community Hospital	General medical & surgical hospitals	500-999 employees
331512	7	Signicast LLC	Steel investment foundries	500-999 employees
622110	8	Aurora Medical Center of Washington	General medical & surgical hospitals	250-499 employees
323113	9	Serigraph Inc	Commercial screen printing	250-499 employees
424410	10	Sysco Eastern Wisconsin LLC	General line grocery merchant wholesalers	250-499 employees
621111	11	Aurora Medical Group Inc	Offices of physicians, except mental health	250-499 employees
332214	12	Regal Ware Inc	Kitchen utensil, pot, & pan manufacturing	250-499 employees

Transportation

Businesses need to be able to ship and receive with ease, which is only possible when you have direct access to railways, major highways and an airport.

Rail

Companies in Washington County have access to freight rail services on lines that are serviced by both Canadian National Railway and Wisconsin and Southern Railroad Company.

Highways

The highways in Washington County connect its market to the rest of the state and nation thanks to a strong network of 4-lane, divided US and state highways. US Highway 41 and 45 connect Washington County to the Green Bay, Fox Valley (Appleton/Oshkosh/Fond du Lac) and Milwaukee markets and nine state highways that connect the county to the rest of the state.

Air

Washington County boasts of two municipal airports (West Bend and Hartford) and is also in close proximity to General Mitchell International Airport in Milwaukee, which has 200+ flights daily. Washington County is just over 30 minutes from the Port of Milwaukee and is also a part of Foreign Trade Zone #41, which allows businesses within the County to take advantage of special benefits that both streamline and reduce costs associated with import / export activity.

Driver Industries

Three industries already have a strong foothold in the County and are driving the economy with their business. These industries are:

Advanced Manufacturing
Food and Beverage/Agribusiness
Printing and Publishing

Emerging Industries

With three driver industries already in place, new industries are steadily becoming increasingly more prevalent and successful in Washington County. These industries are:

Bio-Medical
Renewable Energy/Power Systems