Gov. Sonny Perdue was the featured speaker at Wednesday’s dedication of Johnson Controls’ plant in West Point, where about 300 employees make car seats and door panels for the 2011 Kia Sorento.

The jobs are among about 3,600 that Kia Motors’ suppliers have created in this area. The Kia assembly plant in West Point has another 1,300, but expects to reach 2,500 when it adds a second shift before the end of the year.

“When we landed Kia in West Point, we knew it was a big win,” Perdue told the dedication crowd, which included virtually all of the plant’s employees wearing blue company shirts. “We’re seeing this whole area revitalized. … Kia was the catalyst for a powerful chain of events.”

Johnson Controls, which started production in November along with Kia, has a 127,000-square-foot plant in the Northwest Harris Business Park on Ga. 103. It gets 50 percent of its energy from renewable sources that will save nearly 7,500 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions over the next six years, the equivalent of planting nearly 200,000 trees.

Harris County Commission Chairman Harry Lange praised county voters for approving a special sales tax that financed the purchase of land for Johnson Controls’ plant. The city of West Point helped with infrastructure.

“We’re in the beginning stages of what we believe will be a protracted period of growth that will benefit this area for many years to come,” said West Point Mayor Drew Ferguson IV.

Johnson Controls, based in Milwaukee, “is pleased to support our customer Kia in West Point and bring new jobs to the community,” said Jeff Williams, group vice president and general manager for the company’s Automotive Experience business. “We appreciate all of the support we have received from the state of Georgia, the local community and the Valley Partnership in establishing this new plant.”

Mark Lytle and Yoonie Kim, project managers with the Georgia Department of Economic Development, assisted the company with its location.

Joel Martin can be reached at jmartin@ lagrangenews.com or (706) 884-7311, Ext. 235.