Johnson Controls, a Wisconsin-based supplier for Kia Motors, signed an agreement Friday to train employees for its West Point facility through Georgia Quick Start and West Georgia Technical College.

“In these tough economic times, it’s refreshing to be able to announce job creation,” said John Gick, plant manager of the Johnson Controls plant now nearing completion in the Northwest Harris Industrial Park, located inside the city limit of West Point.

The company plans to hire 300 workers - about 100 of them this year - to supply complete seat systems and door panels for Kia.

The company will accept applications during a job fair from noon to 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Callaway Center for International Business at 220 Fort Drive in LaGrange.

“Creating good jobs has never been more important than it is right now,” said Jackie Rohosky, assistant commissioner of economic development programs for the Technical College System of Georgia and head of Quick Start. “We’re proud to be able to partner with Johnson Controls and West Georgia Technical College to deliver workforce solutions to help this world-class company’s Georgia enterprise reach its full potential as quickly as possible.”

Johnson Controls is a global business in the automotive, building efficiency and power fields. The company provides automotive interiors designed to help make driving more comfortable, safe and sustainable. For buildings, it offers products and services intended to optimize energy use and improve comfort and security. Johnson Controls also provides batteries for automobiles and hybrid electric vehicles, along with systems engineering and service expertise.

Quick Start is Georgia’s economic development program that provides free, customized workforce training to qualified new, expanding and existing businesses. Since 1967, Quick Start has trained more than 600,000 employees through 5,100 projects with a broad range of industries.

The Quick Start training agreement was developed based on a project study that was conducted at the Johnson Controls facility in Cottondale, Ala. The agreement is based on Johnson’s commitment to provide roughly 300 new jobs for Georgians. Quick Start will be designing and developing training material, as well as providing instructors, for the classes.

The training program involves Johnson Controls, West Georgia Tech and Quick Start. Each will be responsible for the successful completion of the program. The partnership will not end when the training is completed. West Georgia Tech will be available to assist Johnson Controls with ongoing training programs.

“We are extremely pleased to be working with Johnson Controls and Quick Start,” said Perrin Alford, acting president of the college. “We’re excited about the new opportunities Johnson Controls is bringing here.”