By choosing this fibre not only does the operator gain a light weight mooring system which is relatively maintenance free but also the ship's deck equipment is not subject to the damage caused by 'grooving' that is common with conventional steel wire moorings.

Trials by one ship owner, carried out over the seven year working life of one set of 18 steel mooring lines, identified crew labour costs relating to the maintenance and lubrication of wire lines equal to a minimum one week every three months for all deck personnel. On vessels with smaller crews this may not be sufficient. Additional costs were involved in turning wires 'end-for-end', cleaning up decks, leads and winches after greasing, chafe damage to leads and chocks and costs associated with injuries related to the handling of wire ropes.

A similar comparison for Steelite mooring lines, is based on a minimum service life of 10 years. Few additional costs are expected during the life-time of the rope except for some minor maintenance costs to sleeving, and handling costs when rope is turned 'end-for-end' after approximately five years. When used on ships, with relatively small crews the light weight and buoyancy is an additional bonus.

On tankers and LPG carriers the use of none metallic mooring lines that are inherently spark free is a popular feature.

Synthetic Marlow mooring lines have proved to be particularly popular among shipowners operating on the western seaboard of the United States, trading between Long Beach and Alaska. The company are currently half way through a project to equip five new Millennium class tankers for Houston based Polar Tankers, part of the Conoco Phillips Group. Each ship requires 16 mooring lines, and due to the success of the newbuild programme, orders will be extended to include the remainder of the Polar fleet. This success with Polar Tankers has also led to other West Coast operators using the Marlow product.

Closer to home the company has been very active in introducing the fibre into the domestic marine military market, the benefits of which have been quickly and clearly appreciated.