Country of origin of a 3D Printer

H346536 ACH CATEGORY: Origin Lisa Murrin Expeditors Tradewin, LLC 795 Jubilee Drive Peabody, MA 01960 RE: Country of origin of a 3D Printer Dear Ms. Murrin, This is in response to your ruling request dated March 11, 2025 , submitted on behalf of your client, SprintRay Inc. (“SprintRay”). You request a ruling regarding the country of origin of a 3D Printer for the purpose of determining the applicability of measures imposed under Section 301(b) of the Trade Act of 1974 (“Section 301”). FACTS: The SprintRay Midas 3D printer is a digital press stereolithography-based (DPS), dental 3D printer enabling the chairside fabrication of crowns, inlays, onlays, and veneers using photopolymer for dental professionals. It features a digital press mechanism (consisting of a print arm, two linear guides, and a stepper motor with a lead screw), a 385 nm UV-A light engine, and a front panel containing a barcode scanner and a digital dashboard/command center. The Midas 3D printer operates on the same fundamental principles as a stereolithography (SLA) printer, including digital light processing and masked-SLA technologies. The printer utilizes a light engine to cure photopolymer resin with ultraviolet light, constructing parts layer by layer with the assistance of a linear stage. What differentiates the DPS printer from traditional SLA printers is its method of resin storage. In the DPS printer, the resin is contained within a specialized capsule, which houses the liquid photopolymer and low separation surface which enables the use of a highly viscous photopolymer, rather than a conventional vat. The Midas 3D printer’s hardware and OS software are designed and developed in the United States. This software is stated to be fundamental to the functionality of the printer, transforming its hardware into a fully operational 3D printing system. All key aspects of the software, including the theory of operation, software architecture, software quality assurance, quality control, software release management, and ecosystem integration, are developed and implemented within the United States. Software and firmware developed in the U.S. are programmed to the motherboard in Mexico. Seventy percent of the software’s code was developed in-house, representing a substantial effort of 74,880 hours and a $4.32 million investment. The Midas 3D printer also uses an AI algorithm developed in the U.S. to convert patient scans into printable medical appliances. The printer is composed of a chassis, an enclosure, a light source (composed of an optical machine and its base, functioning as a 385 nm UV-A light engine), a print arm, electrical components, fasteners, and an upper chassis. The light source initiates the photopolymerization process by triggering a chemical reaction in the liquid photopolymer (a liquid chemical that undergoes a controlled chemical reaction when exposed to the light source, converting it from a liquid state to a solid), causing it to harden and form solid parts. Both components of the light source are of Chinese origin, and the light source makes up approximately 44 percent of the total components cost. The Midas 3D printer also features a high-precision light mask capable of achieving a resolution of 0.045 mm. This technology enables precise, personalized dental care by transforming raw scan data into ready-to-print models. The chassis consists of a main frame, motherboard bracket, two housing brackets, a bottom sealing plate, four fixed heightening columns, two heightening columns, and one heat sink. The enclosure consists of one bottom cover, a front panel, a rear package board, an LCD bracket, a cartridge limit block, an antenna bracket, a button fixing block, two heightening columns, four floor mats, a screw fixing module, pins, couplings, and gaskets. The light source consists of an optical machine base and an optical machine. The print arm consists of a print arm, a screw nut mounting bracket, two linear guides (which work in conjunction with the light mask to ensure precision and control in shaping the printed object), a ball screw, a photoelectric shield, a motor mounting bracket, and a screw fixing seat. The electrical components include a fan, an antenna, a touch screen assembly, a stepper motor, an optical machine control line, a core board, a motherboard (PCBA), cables, wire, and harnesses. The fasteners include approximately 164 components, such as nuts, screws, spring washers, gaskets, and tapes. The motherboard enables connectivity with digital systems. It integrates with Rayware on Cloud, which, when paired with an Intraoral Scanner, facilitates the transfer of 3D scans directly to the printer. The motherboard contains 688 electronic components, including diodes, transistors, capacitors, and memory chips, and is assembled in Mexico using surface mount technology (SMT). The components within the motherboard control the UV LED, cooling fans, motors, and sensors. The upper chassis consists of a pallet frame, a piece of glass, a glass frame, a position detection bracket, and a pallet support. All the components of the Midas 3D printer are made in China except the PCBA (Mexico), lubricating oil (Japan), AB glue (United States), linear guides (Taiwan), and ball screw (Japan). These components are fully assembled into the finished product in Mexico by trained workers utilizing specialized tools taking approximately two hours. Production in Mexico includes quality control inspections, assembly, installation, motherboard production and programming, calibration, testing, inspection, and packaging. Technicians assembling the printer undergo 300 hours of specialized training. Quality control processes include advanced X-ray and Automated Optical Inspection technologies. ISSUE: What is the country of origin of the 3D printer for purposes of the application of Section 301 trade remedy duties? LAW AND ANALYSIS: The United States Trade Representative (“USTR”) has determined that an additional duties will be imposed on certain Chinese imports pursuant to its authority under Section 301. The Section 301 measures apply to products of China enumerated in Section XXII, Chapter 99, Subchapter III, U.S. Note 20(e) and (f), HTSUS. When determining the country of origin for purposes of applying the Section 301 measures, the substantial transformation analysis is applicable. The test is whether an article emerges from a process with a new name, character, or use, different from that possessed by the article prior to processing. Texas Instruments, Inc. v. United States, 69 CCPA 151, 681 F.2d 778 (1982). U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) considers the totality of the circumstances and makes substantial transformation determinations on a case-by-case basis. CBP has stated that a new and different article of commerce is an article that has undergone a change in commercial designation or identity, fundamental character, or commercial use. A determinative issue is the extent of the operations performed and whether the materials lose their identity and become an integral part of the new article. See Nat’l Hand Tool Corp. v. United States, 16 C.I.T. 308 (1992), aff’d, 989 F.2d 1201 (Fed. Cir. 1993). In order to determine whether a substantial transformation occurs, CBP considers the totality of the circumstances and makes such determinations on a case-by-case basis. The country of origin of the item’s components, the extent of the processing that occurs within a country, and whether such processing renders a product with a new name, character, or use are primary considerations in such cases. Additionally, factors such as the resources expended on product design and development, the extent and nature of post-assembly inspection and testing procedures, and worker skill required during the actual manufacturing process may be considered when determining whether a substantial transformation has occurred. No one factor is determinative. See e.g., Headquarters Ruling Letter (“HQ”) H311606, dated June 16, 2021, and HQ H302801, dated October 3, 2019. A new and different article of commerce is an article that has undergone a change in commercial designation or identity, fundamental character, or commercial use. A determinative issue is the extent of the operations performed and whether the materials lose their identity and become an integral part of the new article. See Nat’l Hand Tool Corp. v. United States, 16 C.I.T. 308 (1992), aff’d, 989 F.2d 1201 (Fed. Cir. 1993). “For courts to find a change in character, there often needs to be a substantial alteration in the characteristics of the article or components.” Energizer Battery, Inc. v. United States, 190 F. Supp. 3d 1308, 1318 (Ct. Int’l Trade 2016) (citations omitted). Courts have looked to “the essence” or essential character of the completed article “to determine whether it has undergone a change in character as a result of post- importation processing.” Id. (citing Uniroyal, Inc. v. United States, 542 F. Supp. 1026 (Ct. Int’l Trade 1982), aff’d, 702 F.2d 1022 (Fed. Cir. 1983)). In Uniroyal, 542 F. Supp. at 1030, the U.S. Court of International Trade (“CIT”) held that “it would be misleading to allow the public to believe that a shoe is made in the United States when the entire upper—which is the very essence of the completed shoe—is made in Indonesia and the only step in the manufacturing process performed in the United States is the attachment of an outsole.” In Energizer Battery, Inc. v. United States, 190 F. Supp. 3d 1308 (2016), the CIT interpreted the meaning of the term “substantial transformation.” Energizer Battery involved the determination of the country of origin of a flashlight, referred to as the Generation II flashlight, under the TAA. All the components of the Generation II flashlight were of Chinese origin, except for a white LED and a hydrogen getter. The components were imported into the United States where they were assembled into the finished Generation II flashlight. The Energizer Battery court reviewed the “name, character and use” test in determining whether a substantial transformation had occurred and reviewed various court decisions involving substantial transformation determinations. The court noted, citing Uniroyal, that when “the post-importation processing consists of assembly, courts have been reluctant to find a change in character, particularly when the imported articles do not undergo a physical change.” Energizer at 1318. In addition, the court noted that “when the end-use was pre-determined at the time of importation, courts have generally not found a change in use.” Energizer Battery at 1318, citing as an example, National Hand Tool. Furthermore, courts have considered the nature of the assembly, i.e., whether it is a simple assembly or more complex, such that individual parts lose their separate identities and become integral parts of a new article. In reaching its decision in the Energizer Battery case, the court expressed the question as one of whether the imported components retained their names after they were assembled into the finished Generation II flashlights. The court found “{t}he constitutive components of the Generation II flashlight do not lose their individual names as a result {of} the post-importation assembly.” Energizer Battery at 1322. The court also found that the components had a pre- determined end-use as parts and components of a Generation II flashlight at the time of importation and did not undergo a change in use due to the post-importation assembly process. Finally, the court did not find the assembly process to be sufficiently complex as to constitute a substantial transformation. Thus, the court found that Energizer’s imported components did not undergo a change in name, character, or use because of the post-importation assembly of the components into a finished Generation II flashlight. The court determined that China, the source of all but two components, was the correct country of origin of the finished Generation II flashlights under the government procurement provisions of the TAA. In HQ H241146, dated May 21, 2013, CBP considered the country of origin of monochrome laser printers. In that case, Chinese-origin subassemblies were imported into the United States, where they were assembled with U.S.-origin PCBs, and programmed with Japanese-origin firmware. While the printers were comprised of subassemblies and components from various countries, they were also comprised of a controller unit assembled in the United States (with U.S.-origin PCBs), which was important to the function of the printers. As a result, CBP found that the last substantial transformation occurred in the United States. In HQ H185775, dated December 21, 2011, CBP considered the country of origin of a multifunction office machine. In that case, the incomplete print engine was produced in Vietnam and consisted of a metal frame, plastic skins, motors, controller board with supplier-provided firmware, a laser scanning system, paper trays, cabling paper transport roller, and miscellaneous sensing and imaging systems. The incomplete print engine was shipped to Mexico, where the following assemblies were added: the formatter board, scanner/automatic document feeder, control panel, fax card, hard disk drive/solid state drive, firmware (which was developed and written in the United States), along with other minor components and accessories. CBP determined that Mexico was the country of origin because the assembly of the various nonfunctioning assemblies and components, along with the addition of firmware and programming, resulted in a substantial transformation. On the other hand, in HQ H304667, dated April 21, 2023, CBP considered the country of origin of various models of multi- and single-function printers that underwent final assembly in Mexico. Most of the components for the printers were assembled in China to create subassemblies referred to as “printer transports,” which consisted of the basic housing and associated structures (e.g., frames, covers, laser scanning unit, power supply unit). The units’ PCBAs were manufactured in Mexico via surface mount and pin through hole technology. The devices’ firmware was downloaded in Mexico but was designed in the United States with support from an entity in the Philippines. In determining the country of origin to be China, CBP noted that the Mexican-origin PCBA did not serve as the only fundamental functioning component of the printers, but that the other Chinese-origin components also proved critical in enabling the units to perform their function, including feeding the paper and printing images onto the paper. In HQ H328859, dated June 10, 2024, CBP found that, even though the PCBA of a printer was manufactured in Japan, the country of origin of the printer was China. In this case, by quantity, approximately 97 percent of all components were produced in China. Further, CBP found that, although the PCBA and Japanese-origin firmware enabled the thermal printers to communicate with external devices and process the images to be printed, other components and assemblies were also critical in enabling the printer to form text or images and apply heat to the paper to create text or images. Here, the country of origin of the printers is also China. As in HQ H328859, approximately 97 percent of all components listed on the bill of materials are produced in China, and as in Energizer, most of these components have a pre-determined end use as parts in 3D printers. Most of the components also do not undergo a physical change. Although the PCBA is produced in Mexico, the PCBA does not function as the only fundamental functioning component of the printers, and the other components and assemblies are also critical in enabling the printer to produce dental restorations. For example, the light source that causes the resin to harden is entirely of Chinese origin and makes up approximately 44 percent of the components cost. Further, the linear guides and stepper motor “facilitate precise movement and enable the printer to incrementally press the ‘press plunger’ on the capsule, dispensing resin in accordance with the required layer thickness. This mechanism ensures controlled material flow and layer formation, which are essential for the accuracy and reliability of the printing process.” The UV-A light engine (light source) “consists of UV-A LED lights emitting at a 385 nm wavelength, which serve as the curing source for the photopolymer resin… which is responsible for the high-precision curing process essential to the DPS printing technology.” Further, outside of the PCBA assembly, the assembly operations occurring in Mexico are not complex or meaningful. The assembly process consists of simple steps such as mounting, attaching, wiring, and screwing the imported components together. As in HQ H304667, the fact the software was downloaded in Mexico and designed in the United States does not outweigh the fact that components proving critical in enabling the units to function are of Chinese origin. Similarly, we find that the mechanical printing functions are imparted by the Chinese-origin components. Therefore, we find that the country of origin of the subject 3D printers is China. HOLDING: Based on the information provided, the country of origin of the 3D printer is China. Accordingly, Section 301 measures will apply. Please note that 19 C.F.R. § 177.9(b)(1) provides that “[e]ach ruling letter is issued on the assumption that all of the information furnished in connection with the ruling request and incorporated in the ruling letter, either directly, by reference, or by implication, is accurate and complete in every material respect. The application of a ruling letter by a [CBP] field office to the transaction to which it is purported to relate is subject to the verification of the facts incorporated in the ruling letter, a comparison of the transaction described therein to the actual transaction, and the satisfaction of any conditions on which the ruling was based.” 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 CBP officer handling the transaction. Sincerely, Monika R. Brenner, Chief Valuation and Special Programs Branch