FEBRUARY 25, 2013 — Naval architecture and marine engineering firm Guido Perla & Associates, Inc. (GPA) has released some more details of the two platform supply vessels that BAE Systems is building at its Jacksonville, FL, shipyard for Jackson Offshore Operators, LLC under a contract that includes options for two further vessels (see earlier story).

GPA was awarded a contract to deliver the Design, Regulatory Design and Production Engineering for the Jones Act qualified, 252 ft x 60 ft vessels, which are being built to its GPA 675J design.

Throughout the design and engineering process, GPA worked closely with Jackson Offshore Operators to meet all operational requirements, giving the ships the features and functions that operators and crew members appreciate during operation and maintenance. The result is a customized vessel with optimized cargo capacity, improved fuel consumption, ease of maintenance, redundancy, excellent maneuverability, superb seakeeping and highest safety and comfort standards for the 34 crew members the vessel can accommodate.

"We see it as a vote of confidence that GPA was chosen as such an integral part of this fleet expansion and are continuing to develop our partnership with Jackson Offshore Operators," says Guido Perla, Chairman of GPA. "For the last eight years, GPA has been very involved successfully designing for the international offshore market. We are excited to be able to complement that success with new, modern designs specifically for the Gulf of Mexico and apply our skills and experience to make this project a resounding success GPA's proven design standards offer an economical solution that evolved throughout many years by working with clients in developing the most practical and economical vessel to construct and turning complex ideas into reality. These established standards include many GPA methods and ideas that enable shipyards to build more vessels in less calendar time in a cost-saving manner while owners benefit from a vessel that provides efficient operations meeting the highest standard of the industry.

For the GPA 675J PSV, GPA is using its new series of hull forms that provides a more efficient hull compared to previous designs. A new bow design has been developed that encompasses GPA's special shaped bulb and forward sections that allows for better sea keeping on any sea direction. Many new bow designs offered recently are designed to favor head sea operations, but GPA's design provides a more balanced bow that will enhance operation in head sea, but also on any other sea directions. This gives a more overall performance to the hull by balancing the stern with the bow of the vessel.

The first vessel with these new hulls has been tested in Brazil with the GPA 688SC PSV (PSV 4500). Eight of these vessels are under construction in Brazil.

The GPA 675J PSV also incorporates notable features that GPA has utilized throughout the years on numerous offshore vessels, such as the location of the engine room on the main deck. The layout increases cargo capacity below deck and entails remarkable crew comfort improvements, achieved by adding an extra deck of attenuation between the accommodations and the bow thrusters and cargo machinery, two of the prime contributors of noise and vibration aboard these types of vessels.

GPA pioneered this engine room arrangement several years ago on the ten-vessel GPA 654 PSV series operating in the Gulf of Mexico.

"When we began to consider our fleet growth strategy we immediately targeted GPA to develop a PSV design to meet the current and long-term needs of the deepwater offshore drilling and production market," says Lee Jackson, President and CEO of Jackson Offshore Operators. "The design has been well received as indicated by the long term contracts we have secured on the two new GPA 675J PSVs we are building with BAE."

GPA's independence allows Jackson Offshore Operators to be flexible in their equipment selection and combine vendors that are most suitable for this customized design.

The main equipment on the 76 meter (252 ft) GPA 675J PSV includes an integrated Rolls-Royce ship systems package inclusive of low-voltage active front end diesel-electric system and a complete propulsion package with Azipull propulsion thrusters.

The scope of supply also includes power and propulsion systems integration - including an advanced Acon automation system, an Icon Dynamic Positioning (DP-2) system and a fully integrated electrical detailed engineering package (see earlier story).

GPA says that the use of the Rolls-Royce package demonstrates the firm's flexibility in adapting its designs to meet any equipment manufacturer requirements and in satisfying owner desires and best fit for the project.

The GPA 675J PSV will bear the class notation ABS, +A1, Circle E Offshore Support Vessel (Supply-HNLS), +AMS, DPS-2, FiFi-1, ACCU, SOLAS, USCG Subchapter I& L, Full Ocean, USCG EEP150 Notation, MARPOL Annex I, II, IV and V and increases the number of GPA-designed offshore vessels operating in the Gulf of Mexico to 22. The vessels are expected to enter into service in 2014.