What it is
OPC-UA is a platform-independent, service-oriented industrial standard with built-in security and rich, structured data modelling.
How it works
It uses client/server and publish/subscribe patterns over structured information models, with encryption and authentication built in by design.
In marine use
It appears in modern automation and SCADA systems and increasingly serves as an integration backbone between onboard and shore systems. Machinery condition data reaches shore through it as well, including the vibration channels a survey records under ISO 20283, in a form analytics can consume directly.