COUNTRY OF ORIGIN MARKING OF IMPORTED PRESSURE GAUGE BLANKS

NY 898488 June 27, 1994 MAR-2-90:S:N:N3:102 898488 CATEGORY: MARKING Mr. H. Heinbauer Krupp VDM GmbH Zeilweg 42 D-60439 Frankfurt/Main Germany RE: COUNTRY OF ORIGIN MARKING OF IMPORTED PRESSURE GAUGE BLANKS Dear Mr. Heinbauer: This is in response to your letter dated May 25, 1994 requesting a ruling on whether imported pressure gauge blanks are required to be individually marked with the country of origin if it is later to be processed in the U.S. by a U.S. manufacturer. A sample was submitted with your letter for review. The item at hand is a brass forging that will be further machined in the United States to function as the component frame of a mechanical pressure gauge. It will be sold by your firm to an unrelated U.S. producer who, according to your letter, will be the final consumer of the imported article. The forging will be incorporated into the final pressure gauge and will not be resold in it's imported condition. You also state that the U.S. producer is aware of the country of origin of this forging. 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. See, 19 CFR 134.35.  In this case, the imported blanks are substantially transformed as a result of the U.S. processing, and therefore the U.S. manufacturer is the ultimate purchaser of the imported blanks and under 19 CFR 134.35 only the containers which reach the ultimate purchaser are required to be marked with the country of origin "France". 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