The increased use of sensors and electronic control systems will undoubtedly bring a step change in both the accuracy and the amount of information that will be available to the engineers in charge of a marine power plant. The sensors are linked to PLC, microprocessors or full computer systems. However, as with any communication system they all have to be speaking the same language and using the same transportation system. A computer-controlled system employing a universal bus system instead of individually wired circuits is the modern trend for control engineering.