Thank you for the reference to Fraginal's "The Sugar Mill."
On your question I am not sure how to interpret it. What period are you thinking of when you say "slavery ended."
_War-ship_ technology did improve in Athens when citizens became rowers or rather when rowers became full citizens and more and more war ships were needed. But this was not because of the decline or "end" of slavery in any sense. In fact the increase of citizen rowers probably led to an increase of the slave population in Athens, though this has not been shown to a certainty.
The relationship between the rowers and democracy is well documented, though still a matter of debate. The rowers became a backbone of democracy and politicians such as Pericles would raise their rate of pay to curry favor and to increase the social weight of the rowers. Note the more ships, the more rowers and the greater the social weight of this sector. Also, note that Athens, at the height of its empire had its "allies" paying for most of the ships. The rowers were known to go on (what we would today call a) strike, for pay in advance, so that their wives and children would be provided for while they were away. To understand why the social weight of this group of "rowers" led to increasing democratic tendencies, one has to only remember that "rowers" as a group only needed their hands and arms to participate in war, where as hoplites had to but expensive armor.
The lowest of the four Solonian property classes were called "Thetes", which was also synonymous with "hired labor." The fact that there were more and more ships and warships being built in Athens and more and more _thetes_ being hired to row them, actually probably led to an increase in the use of slaves. Without _thetes_ in the craft shops slaves had to be imported to do the craft work. These slaves were often employed by non-Athenian citizens, who were given special protection to move to Athens, to open up workshops etc. These were called _metics_. The most famous _metic_ in our time was the arms and armor maker Cephalus, father of Polymarchus, who appears in the first book of Platos "Republic." He was probably the wealthiest man in Athens at the time.
The discussion of the _metics_ brings us to the point about the improvement of war ship technology. The ships became sleeker, faster, lower, more stable, and the battering ram more effective. (Or at least I am told for I know next to nothing about this kind of technology.) But I do know the reason why this happened in Athens. It was because of the _metics_. Foreign craftsmen flocked to Athens. There were craftsmen from all different parts of Greece, in fact from different parts of the eastern Mediterranean, in Attica and in the shipbuilding districts. They all brought different crafts and ways of doing things and once in Athens the shared and competed against each other. Also, after the formation of the Delian League Athenian allies paid tribute to Athens in exchange for protection. They also paid for the cost of the ships of that were meant to protect them. That means that shipbuilders in cities outside of Athens often had to give up their profession or move to Athens as _metics_ to find work.
As far as why the technology of ship building improved in Athens once again, I think, the lesson is that the increase of circulation and sharing of technological knowledge makes for better technology.
As for the rowers themselves, because there were so many warships being built, rowing in effect became a full time profession. But this meant that the rowers often neglected their small farms or their little craft works went out of business. You can only row for so long before your body gives out. So what to do with all of these ex-rowers who are good citizens of the democracy? Why, pay them to serve on juries and to do other civic functions of course! Jury duty ended up being a kind of social security.
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