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44MNOctober 2011describe as ?special relationships.? GPA?s philosophy of nurturing close relationships with all of the parties involved in the design, construction and operation of a vessel includes owners and shipyards and extends to suppliers. Building and maintaining such long- lasting relationships with suppliers has been a very impor- tant factor in the company?s success throughout GPA?s existence. To create and maintain such close relationships not just in the US but also throughout the world is the main motivation behind GPA deciding to go abroad with the company as they believe it to be vital to have a con- tinuous presence in different markets in the world. Perla told MarPro in September, ?Our company history is char- tered by relationships and we feed new relationships by growing support networks, offering local support to our clients. We set out to develop the most personal, practi- cal, affordable and efficient high quality service that we can in order to bring something different to the maritime world.?To be competitive worldwide, GPA specializes in design- ing custom-tailored, efficient and capable vessels that meet owner?s requirements and are environmentally friendly. Cost efficiency is one of the most crucial factors in order to maintain a successful position among other, mostly larger naval architecture firms, which are often- times owned by large equipment suppliers and can there- fore offer different competitive advantages. Therefore, yard-friendly designs have become the standard for GPA designs as the so-called constructability not only helps yards deliver vessels more quickly to owners but also results in reduced man-hours and shorter build cycles and therefore in reduced cost. This advantage has resulted in GPA securing several contracts for a number of vessels built in large numbers, including the well-known Bourbon Liberty 100 (GPA 654M PSV) and 200 (GPA 254L AHTS) vessels. These efficient construction methods make use of single-curva- ture hulls, transverse framing and flanged plate framing, a combination that is now standard for GPA and a trade- mark for GPA offshore designs but also other vessel types as GPA designs vessels for various sectors in the maritime market. The diverse portfolio evolved over the years after the focus on fishing vessels in the early years had to shift to other vessel types due to a moratorium placed on com- mercial fishing in 1990. Since then, GPA extended the range of vessel types at first to include casino vessels and then any other vessel type. At the time of delivery in 1999, the M/V Tan?erliq and its sister Nanuq were the most powerful tugs of their type. They were special-ly designed for Crowley Maritime Services to meet a contract with Alyeska Pipeline Service Co for tanker escort operations in ValdezHarbor and Prince William Sound, Alaska.MN#10 (32-49):MN 2011 Layouts 10/5/2011 10:40 AM Page 44