Visitors and transplants to Washington County will be welcomed back to a simpler, more enjoyable lifestyle that never left the Mid-Ohio Valley. Rush hour never quite developed here. Doors often go unlocked. Contemplating homeownership will not trigger sticker shock. Schools are still safe places for learning and fun. Trips to commune with nature are counted in minutes, if not by opening your back door. And front porches are still used for sitting and chatting with neighbors along tree-lined streets. Read more under our Quality of Life section.

Ingenuity and self-reliance were necessities in the pioneer days. Our pioneer ancestors would be proud of the creative flair still present today. In the last 30 years, over 200 patents have originated from Washington County inventors. Supporting our innovations is a culture of entrepreneurship:

• One of our largest industries, now called Thermo Fisher, originated from a local entrepreneur Dick Bergen.
• The flexible magnet industry was born and proliferated here. Today, Flexmag, Magnum Magnetics and Magnetic Specialties make Marietta the flexible magnet capital of the world.
• Using innovative approaches to solve problems on and off the field, Grimm Scientific designs and creates sports medicine and game management equipment.
• Farrar Scientific provides consulting and engineering solutions to high-end clients everywhere for ultra-low temperature refrigeration.
• Dimex started small but through entrepreneurial grit and engineering genius continues to grow in new markets for plastic extrusion.
• Electronic Design for Industry designs and creates a variety of efficiency improvements for the oil and gas industry.
• Airolite, a renowned architectural louvers company whose products grace buildings that are considered works of art, bases its design and engineering talents here in Washington County.

Creative talent in Washington County extends to intellectual property and artistic talent too. Read more under the Creative Class section.

Like the first settlers, productivity is a matter of survival. In the global economy, Washington County companies and employees are working hard to compete, and they are doing so with advanced technologies. Our manufacturers report productivity levels here that exceed sister plants in other locations. (See our Work Force section for more information.) But hard work is not enough. Equally important is the deployment of the latest processes and technologies.

• Americas Styrenics conducts R&D near Marietta for the production of styrenics.
• Solvay Advanced Polymers has decided to produce its new generation of sulfone polymers in Washington County.
• Tata Enterprises provides high-end business-to-business customer support services for high-profile "dot-com" companies using advanced broadband.