The country of origin of a 3D printer and the applicability of certain trade remedies under Section 301.

N344910 January 22, 2025 OT:RR:NC:N1:104 CATEGORY: Origin Lisa Murrin Expeditors Tradewin LLC 795 Jubilee DrivePeabody, MA 01960 RE:  The country of origin of a 3D printer and the applicability of certain trade remedies under Section 301. Dear Ms. Murrin: In your letter dated January 2, 2025, you requested a country of origin ruling on behalf of your client, SprintRay Inc. (“SprintRay”). The SprintRay Pro 2 additive manufacturing device, or 3D Printer, is a machine used by dental professionals.  It produces three-dimensional products, such as dental models, dentures, retainers and surgical guides through stereolithography apparatus (SLA) technology. The Pro 2 selectively exposes a light-sensitive liquid resin (photopolymer) to a UV LED light source and optical panel (light mask) to harden and create thin layers of material that build up to form a solid object. The unit measures 15 x 18 x 21 in. and weighs 65 lbs.   In Mexico, hundreds of components and materials from China and other countries are assembled into various subassemblies that comprise the finished Pro 2.  First, the system’s motherboard, or “mainboard,” will be manufactured in Mexico using surface-mount technology (SMT). The motherboard is the main circuit board in the Pro 2, which is said to act as the central hub or “brain” of the Pro 2. Its assembly in Mexico entails the loading of a raw printed circuit board (PCB) with over 900 electronic components from China and various other countries, including diodes, transistors, capacitators, and memory chips, these components being essential to controlling the Pro 2’s key operations including the UV LED, cooling fans, motors, and sensors. The motherboard also houses the microcontroller unit (MCU), stepper driver, communications processing chipsets and interfaces (Ethernet/WIFI/Bluetooth), and connection interfaces for all major electrical subsystems. This PCBA is then wave soldered and subjected to various testing procedures. This assembly operation takes 39 minutes and requires highly skilled technicians.    Also assembled onto the Pro 2’s motherboard in Mexico is a China-origin Core Board, which is a generic off-the-shelf system-on-module device with an embedded system-on-chip. While the Core Board is an essential component in that it provides basic system components, such as the CPU, storage, and memory, it requires the motherboard to integrate these components into the device's functionality and fully drive the Pro 2’s operations. After the motherboard is assembled in Mexico, printer proprietary software (designed and developed in the U.S.) is burned onto the motherboard. In addition to loading the software onto the CPU and the firmware onto the MCU, the mainboard also contains an EEPROM, which stores essential information for tracing the mainboard. The EEPROM, CPU and MCU are programmed in Mexico. In addition to the motherboard, the finished Pro 2 is comprised of several other subassemblies that will be assembled in Mexico from components, subsidiary PCBAs, and other materials originating mainly from China, including: (1) Linear Stage; (2) Print Arm; (3) UV LED Light Source; (4) Back Panel; (5) Housing Front Panel; (6) Print/Build Platform; (7) Optical Panel; (8) Resin Tank; and (9) Accessory Box. Although many of these assembly operations do not on the surface appear particularly complex, such as affixing wires to circuit boards, gluing, cable attachment, mounting, and pressing together and screwing-down components, others are performed by highly trained technicians using specialized tools calibrated by SprintRay engineers in Mexico, including the programming of certain China-origin PCBAs. For example, the light mask subassembly, produced in Mexico from China-origin components including the LCD Panel Assembly and UV LCD PCBA, involves several highly specialized assembly steps and calibrations which transform a standard LCD assembly into an optical panel. The UV LCD PCBA contains an EEPROM, which arrives in Mexico unprogrammed and acquires its functionality during the assembly, programming, and calibration process in Mexico.  The EEPROM’s function is to store the optical panel’s light intensity calibration data. Additionally, in Mexico the build platform, linear guide, and production and QC tools are also calibrated in Mexico. The build platform also includes a PCBA which houses an EEPROM that stores critical information related to the platform’s detection and heating functionalities. This EEPROM is programmed in Mexico, which enables the PCBA to work in conjunction with a temperature sensor to regulate and maintain the optimal temperature for photopolymer resin. When determining the country of origin for purposes of applying current trade remedies under Section 301, the substantial transformation analysis is applicable.  See, e.g., Headquarters Ruling Letter (“HQ”) H301619, dated November 6, 2018. 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, 681 F.2d 778 (C.C.P.A. 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). Regarding the finished Pro 2 3D printer, the information presented indicates that in totality, the production and assembly steps performed in Mexico constitute a substantial transformation of the foreign raw materials and components. As noted, several aspects of these production and assembly processes are complex and require specialized tools, calibration, and programming. The China materials imported into Mexico to produce the Pro 2 do not have the essential character of a 3D dental printer and have no functionality, particularly without the motherboard which is fully assembled in Mexico. The motherboard imparts the essential character of the 3D printer in that it functions as the primary board and controls the machine’s key operations and is responsible for executing all high-level functions required for printing. Accordingly, the country of origin of the complete Pro 2 3D printer is Mexico. As the Pro 2 3D printer will be a product of Mexico, the relevant Section 301 provision does not apply. 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 of the information furnished in the ruling letter, whether directly, by reference, or by implication, is accurate and complete in every material respect. If 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. Additionally, we note 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 and Border Protection 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, please contact National Import Specialist Arthur Purcell at arthur.purcell@cbp.dhs.gov. Sincerely, Steven A. Mack Director National Commodity Specialist Division