One of the most prevalent applications of stainless steel cable ties is in the marine industry, especially shipbuilding. Marine vessels are built to withstand extreme temperatures, volatile weather and rough seas and stainless steel cable ties and banding are well suited for all these conditions.
Type 316 stainless steel is the most popular cable tie type used for marine applications because it is non-corrosive and resistant to salt water corrosion. This type of stainless steel is also very strong and has the ability to remain secure as the ship tosses back and forth on the seas.
On many large ships there are miles of cables running back and forth from one end of the ship all the way to the other end. These can be anything from electric cables to communication cables to navigation cables, etc. It is imperative that they are all easily identified by both the crew and maintenance personnel. Stainless steel cable ties are often used to assist in the labelling process of these cables.
In order to keep the particularly heavy cables from moving around as the ship moves, they are bundled together and fastened to the structure of the ship with stainless steel banding. Not only are they strong enough to keep the cables secure, they are also resistant to the vibration and constant movement of the ship, as well as the constant shift in temperatures.