MAR-2-84:S:N:N1:104 808608
Mr. Brian D. Fritsch
Thermacore Inc.
780 Eden Road
Lancaster, PA 17601
RE: Country of origin marking of heat exchanger cores
Dear Mr. Fritsch:
This is in response to your letter dated March 8, 1995,
requesting a ruling on whether imported heat exchanger cores are
required to be individually marked with the country of origin if
they are later to be processed in the U.S. by a U.S. manufacturer.
A marked sample was not submitted with your letter for review.
The heat exchanger core is a heat exchanger subassembly
constructed of 25 steel tubes with attached aluminum fins. The
article is a product of the Ukraine. The tubes are evacuated and
filled with a small amount of H2O. This process makes them "heat
pipes" (a two-phase heat transfer system). The final subassembly
has a protective aluminum housing that surrounds the fins. After
importation, two fans, a wire harness and a gasket will be
installed on the heat exchanger core at your manufacturing
facilities. The completed unit will then be individually packaged
and marketed as a cabinet cooler. All of the components that are
installed on the Ukrainian subassembly are manufactured in the
United States with the exception of the fans which are of foreign
origin.
In your letter, you indicate that your firm plans to import
these subassemblies in lots of 50 units or more per shipment. The
units will be bulk packaged in crates.
The marking statute, section 304, Tariff Act of 1930, as
amended (19 U.S.C. 1304), provides that, unless excepted, every
article of foreign origin (or its container) imported into the
U.S. shall be marked in a conspicuous place as legibly, indelibly
and permanently as the nature of the article (or its container)
will permit, in such a manner as to indicate to the ultimate
purchaser in the U.S. the English name of the country of origin of
the article.
Part 134, Customs Regulations (19 CFR Part 134), implements
the country of origin marking requirements and exceptions of 19
U.S.C. 1304. Section 134.41(b), Customs Regulations (19 CFR
134.41(b)), mandates that the ultimate purchaser in the U.S. must
be able to find the marking easily and read it without strain.
Section 134.1(d), defines the ultimate purchaser as generally the
last person in the U.S. who will receive the article in the form in
which it was imported. 19 CFR 134.1(d)(1) states that if an
imported article will be used in manufacture, the manufacturer may
be the ultimate purchaser if he subjects the imported article to a
process which results in a substantial transformation of the
article. The case of U.S. v. Gibson-Thomsen Co., Inc., 27 C.C.P.A.
267 (C.A.D. 98) (1940), provides that an article used in
manufacture which results in an article having a name, character or
use differing from that of the constituent article will be
considered substantially transformed and that the manufacturer or
processor will be considered the ultimate purchaser of the
constituent materials. In such circumstances, the imported article
is excepted from marking and only the outermost container is
required to be marked.
In this case, the imported heat exchanger cores are
substantially transformed as a result of the U.S. processing, and
therefore the U.S. manufacturer is the ultimate purchaser of the
imported heat exchanger cores and under 19 CFR 134.35 only the
containers which reach the ultimate purchaser are required to be
marked with the country of origin "Made in the Ukraine".
This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177
of the Customs Regulations (19 CFR Part 177).
A copy of this ruling letter should be attached to the entry
documents filed at the time this merchandise is entered. If the
documents have been filed without a copy, this ruling should be
brought to the attention of the Customs officer handling the
transaction.
Sincerely,
Jean F. Maguire
Area Director
New York Seaport