NY 856740
OCT 22 1990
CLA-2-84:S:N:N1:104 856740
Mr. Nicholas J. Gibbs
Australian Stencil Technologies
137 Northern Road
West Heidelberg, Victoria 3081
Australia
RE: The tariff classification of a stencil cutter from
Australia.
Dear Mr. Gibbs:
In your letter dated September 18, 1990, you requested a
tariff classification ruling.
The CG90 stencil cutter is a free-standing microcomputer
controlled machine used to cut stencils. The unit's tubular
steel frame supports an X-Y traverse and an electric control
cabinet. Stencil blanks up to 1000mm wide are held in position
by pneumatic clamps on the cutting table located beneath the
traverse. The X-Y mechanical traverse mechanism is fitted with a
rotating cutter head driven by a high torque, variable frequency
3 phase motor. The cutter head utilizes spiral fluted or single
point tungsten carbide cutting tools. The cutting pattern is
generated from a separate microcomputer which will not be
imported. The unit uses Stencil Cutting Input Language ("SCIL"),
an input language written specifically for stencils. The X-Y
traverse causes the cutter to move in a prescribed manner to
remove material from the blank sheet in order to produce a
stencil. The CG90 was developed to cut stencils to be used in
marking, coding and identifying various articles. However; other
uses of the unit include routing acrylic signs and machining
custom printed circuit boards.
The stencil cutter can cut various stencil materials such as
polypropylene and "mylar" polyester plastics, oilboard (an
impregnated paperboard), "novasteen" canvas bakelite and various
flexible magnetic materials. Information furnished with your
inquiry indicated that at the time of the unit's importation into
the United States, the principal use of the CG90 will be to cut
stencils in hard plastics.
The applicable subheading for the CG90 stencil cutter will
be 8465.99.0050, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States
(HTS), which provides for machine tools for working wood, cork,
bone, hard rubber, hard plastics or other similar hard materials:
other, other. The rate of duty will be 3% ad valorem.
This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Section
177 of the Customs Regulations (19 C.F.R. 177).
A copy of this ruling letter should be attached to the entry
documents filed at the time this merchandise is imported. 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