One of the first high performance materials to be used in the rope industry were aramids such as Kevlar, Technora and Twaron. Aramid or poly-(para-phenylene terephthalamide) is a low stretch, high strength fibre with good resistance to creep and high temperatures. However its UV and abrasion resistance are poor, this means that an aramid rope is best jacketed in another material such as polyester. Aramids have a poor resistance to knots and bending requiring large sheaves on pulleys.
Within the aramid family there are also Meta-Aramids (poly-(meta-phenylene isophthalamide)) such as Nomex and Tejinconex, these are meta linked aramids and have excellent resistance to flames and heat but are not as strong as para linked aramids.