The country of origin of hammers.

N328426 October 12, 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 hammers. Dear Huijuan Xu: In your letter dated September 28, 2022, you requested a country-of-origin ruling. The imported articles are hammers with steel heads and are identified as the following: Husky 16 oz Fiberglass Claw Hammer (SKU#1000300224); Husky 20 oz Fiberglass Rip Hammer (SKU#1000300256); Husky 16 oz Steel Rip Hammer (SKU#1004655426); Husky 20 oz Steel Ripping Hammer (SKU#1000051235); Husky 22 oz Milled Steel Framing Hammer (SKU#1003235778). They include slightly different hammer head shapes, handle types and vary in weight. You have stated that all are manufactured in the same manner. 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 heads. A hole for the handle is machined into each of the heads, as is the final driving head. The steel hammer heads are then sent to China where they are heat-treated, polished, cleaned and coated with antirust oil. Finally, the hammer heads are assembled with Chinese-origin handles and packed for export to the United States. With regard to your request for the appropriate country of origin for the finished hammers, 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). To establish whether a substantial transformation occurs when components of various origins are assembled into completed products, all factors are considered in order to determine whether a product with a new name, character and use has been produced. Such factors include, but are not limited to, the components used to create the product and manufacturing processes that these components undergo. 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 heads that imparts the essence of finished hammers. In Vietnam the hammer heads are forged and take on the shape and size of finished hammer heads. Based on the provided description and pictures of the assembly and finishing operations performed in China, the forged hammer heads are not substantially changed so as to transform them into a new article with a different name, character, or use. Additionally, the hammer heads are not substantially transformed by the attachment of the handles. It is therefore the opinion of this office that the finished hammers should have a country of origin of Vietnam. The holding set forth above applies only to the specific factual situation and merchandise description as identified in the ruling request. This position is clearly set forth in Title 19, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Section 177.9(b)(1). This section states that a ruling letter is issued on the assumption that all the information furnished in the ruling letter, whether directly, by reference, or by implication, is accurate and complete in every material respect. In the event that the facts are modified in any way, or if the goods do not conform to these facts at time of importation, you should bring this to the attention of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and submit a request for a new ruling in accordance with 19 CFR 177.2. You should also be aware that the material facts described in the foregoing ruling may be subject to periodic verification by CBP. 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