Hi Scott,
I moved your post to my "Profile Page" to the actual "forum".
As to your questions, Anytime you can if you're doing what I would call "production detailing", which is what most of what the boat detailing industry is, then you want to stick with one-step cleaner/waxes.
Here are two that work great, one is for light oxidation and the other is for heavy oxidation. You can apply these by hand or machine and any type of machine and even pad.
Marine 31 All-In-One Gel Coat Polish & Wax - 16 ounce
Marine 31 Gel Coat Heavy-Cut Cleaner Wax