The HART Communication Foundation and Fieldbus Foundation announced their merger, constructing a single organization with the goal of leading process automation communications and integration technologies.

Soon to be known collectively as the FieldComm Group, the merger was approved by both organizations’ respective boards in August, which also elected Hans-Georg Kumpfmueller as chairman of the new board. Kumpfmueller will lead the direction of the FieldComm Group and oversee the addition of FDI LLC in mid-2015.

HART says Kumpfmueller has served as a leader in setting the course of device integration in his role as chairman of the FDI LLC board and CEO of sensors and communication at Siemens. Kumpfmueller calls the merger a “major step forward for the process industries by leveraging the strengths of each industry-leading protocol and adding the value of the next generation integration strategy.”

The board appointed Ted Masters as president and CEO of FieldComm Group; Rich Timoney will serve as executive vice president of the group during the transition and integration of the two organizations.

“The creation of FieldComm Group is an unprecedented opportunity to build upon existing technologies and develop a single future vision toward harmonization of standards for the process automation industry worldwide,” Masters says. “I am excited about the opportunity to work together with distinguished leaders and technologies around the globe to integrate valuable process intelligence from devices to improve the operations of our users.”

FieldComm Group will consolidate offices in Austin, TX and will function as a single entity beginning Jan. 1, 2015. Until that time, the HART Communication Foundation and Fieldbus Foundation will continue to operate independently.

Founded in 1993, HART is a not-for-profit membership organization that provides support for the HART Communication technology and standards worldwide. It is supported by a global membership of 320 companies.

The Fieldbus Foundation, also a global not-for-profit corporation, consists of process end-users and automation companies that work together to develop an automation infrastructure.