APC is celebrating its 100th tanker coating with MarineLine®, the tank lining system first applied to a ship in 1994.

The 100th ship is the 7,000 DWT Pakri Victory, owned by Turkey’s MedMarine Group. This newbuild has been constructed at the new Eregli Shipyard, on the Black Sea, in Turkey, which is owned by MedMarine and which recently opened as one of Turkey’s largest shipyards. The Pakri Victory is the first of five chemical tankers being constructed by MedMarine at the yard. Two additional 7,000 DWT tankers are being constructed, as well as two others of 11,240 DWT, and all will be coated with MarineLine®.

MarineLine® has seen significant growth over the years. From 1994 through 2002, an average of four ships/year were coated. Then, the number of coated ships nearly doubled in 2003, and again in 2004 and 2005. In 2006, there will be 46 ships coated, including the 100th ship. For 2007 an even higher number is scheduled and up to 2009 there are more than 126 ships that are contracted to receive the MarineLine® coating system.

What has been driving this success? Accoring to APC, it is performance. MarineLine® has outperformed stainless steel and/or coatings such as epoxies. It is the only coating capable of handling the full range of range of IMO approved chemical cargoes.

Additionally, independent lab tests verify that MarineLine®’s unique cross-linked polymer structure does not allow the chemical cargo to permeate the lining. This answers the critical need to assure product purity, the driving factor that chemical companies look for when transporting their cargoes on the high seas.

Lastly, with Marineline®’s hard and slippery surface, ship owners have found that tank cleaning is fast and easy. Ship owners are getting a quicker turnaround in port, allowing the ship to return to sea faster. MarineLine® also ensures that different cargoes can be carried back to back, thus removing the sequencing that is mandated for other tank coatings and stainless steel.