The country of origin of a hammer.

N326538 June 24, 2022 CLA-2-82:OT:RR:NC:N1:118 CATEGORY: Country of Origin Huijuan Xu Shanghai Thor Industrial Co., Ltd. 2/F,185 Sanzao Road Zhangjiang Town, Pudong New District Shanghai, 201210 China RE: The country of origin of a hammer. Dear Huijuan Xu: In your letter dated June 8, 2022, you requested a country of origin ruling. The imported article, identified as, SKU#243734 HUSKY 21oz Framing Hammer, is a hammer with a steel head. The manufacturing process begins in Vietnam, where raw Chinese-origin carbon steel is cut, forged, and sandblasted into the final shape and size of the imported hammer head. A hole for the handle is machined into the head, as is the final driving head. The steel hammer head is then sent to China where it is heat-treated, polished, cleaned and coated with antirust oil. Finally, the hammer head is assembled with a Chinese-origin handle, affixed with a label, and packed for export to the United States. With regard to your request for the appropriate country of origin for the finished hammer, 19 C.F.R. § 134.1(b) provides in pertinent part as follows: Country of origin means the country of manufacture, production, or growth of any article of foreign origin entering the United States. Further work or material added to an article in another country must effect a substantial transformation in order to render such other country the “country of origin” within the meaning of this part; The test for determining whether a substantial transformation will occur 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. See Texas Instruments Inc. v. United States, 69 C.C.P.A. 151 (1982). This determination is based on the totality of the evidence. See National 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 when components of various origins are assembled into completed products, all factors such as the components used to create the product and manufacturing processes that these components undergo are considered in order to determine whether a product with a new name, character and use has been produced. No one factor is decisive, and assembly operations that are minimal will generally not result in a substantial transformation. In our view, it is the forging of the hammer head that imparts the essence of the finished hammer. In Vietnam, the hammer head is forged and takes on the shape and size of the finished hammer head. Based on the provided description and pictures of the assembly and finishing operations performed in China, the forged hammer head is not substantially changed so as to transform it into a new article with a different name, character, or use. Additionally, the hammer head is not substantially transformed by the attachment of the handle. It is therefore the opinion of this office that the finished hammer should have a country of origin of Vietnam. This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs Regulations (19 C.F.R. § 177). A copy of the ruling or the control number indicated above should be provided with the entry documents filed at the time this merchandise is imported. If you have any questions regarding the ruling, contact National Import Specialist Anthony E. Grossi at anthony.e.grossi@cbp.dhs.gov. Sincerely, Steven A. Mack Director National Commodity Specialist Division