A gathering of business, education and government leaders on Friday was considered the first step in developing ways to train workers for new technologies such as wind power and electric vehicles.

The session, sponsored by Snap-on and held at its Kenosha headquarters, included comments from Gov. Jim Doyle that a quality education was paramount in keeping Wisconsin competitive once the economy improves. Doyle acknowledged he’s proposed cutting school funds a few percent, although that’s less than the several percent in other areas of the state budget.

Snap-on also introduced its “Innovation Works” facility, a 15,000-square-foot site at its headquarters that includes a service garage, a three-dimensional modeling process, a prototype production space, a customer observation room, and a library and training room as a resource.

Leo Reddy, retired CEO and founder of the National Council for Advanced Manufacturing, said companies have complained that their workforces are not trained to handle new technologies and methods.

“We need to have industrial athletes of the future who can learn and adapt to changes as they arrive,” he said.

Technology that needs addressing now is developing a practical battery for electric vehicles, said Glenn Bower, University of Wisconsin-Madison professor. Newer types might deliver more power than traditional batteries, but they don’t perform in extreme temperatures, for example, he said.

Auto technicians would face major retraining with certain high voltage batteries that pack enough power to kill someone improperly working around it, Bower said.

Andy Palmen, owner of Palmen Motors in Kenosha, said customers talk about hybrid cars.

“We want to make sure we can fix them,” he said. “To do that, we need to get into the high schools and attract the smartest and brightest” to be auto technicians.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s goal that 20 percent of the country’s power come from wind by 2030 has spawned estimates that some 180,000 technicians will be needed to maintain that equipment, said Dale Alberts with Snap-on industrial business development.

“This will require new and well-trained employees,” he said.

Doyle and Snap-on Chief Executive Officer Nick Pinchuk both warned that underestimating other countries’ technological expertise would be a mistake.

“The workforces of emerging markets are productive, committed and formidable,” Pinchuk said. “Their hands are a blur as they work, and they’ll regale you with statistics worthy of any university class. We can’t ignore or dismiss them with the thought that they are less capable, because that’s not true.”