CLA-2 CO:R:C:G 083183 TLS
Mr. James Caffentzis
Fitch, King, and Caffentzis
116 John Street
New York, New York 10038
RE: Classification of Yankee cylinders from England
Dear Mr. Caffentzis:
Your letter of October 25, 1988 to our New York office
requested a ruling, on behalf of your client, Beloit Corporation,
on the appropriate tariff classification of the Yankee dryer
cylinder under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United
States Annotated (HTSUSA). It has been referred to this office
for reply.
FACTS:
Pictures of the Yankee cylinder were submitted along with a
description of how it is used in the making of paper. The
cylinder is a cast iron rotating cylinder with a very smooth
surface and is 8-20 feet in diameter. It is used between the
press and calendering sections of a papermaking machine to dry a
continuous paper sheet. The paper sheet is pressed tightly
against the hot outer shell of the Yankee cylinder by means of a
pressure roller. The outer shell of the cylinder is heated by
steam that is passed through the inner space of the cylinder.
The heated surface of the cylinder then evaporates moisture from
the paper sheet, which dries it. Different types of paper can be
produced depending on the drying process used. If the paper is
lifted off the cylinder before it is completely dry, then a crepe
or tissue-like paper is produced. If the paper is allowed to
remain on the cylinder until completely dry, then a glossy
surface is produced on the paper, known as machine glazed (MG)
paper.
ISSUE:
Under which HTS heading is the Yankee drying cylinder
properly classifiable:
1) 8439, HTSUSA, covering machinery for making pulp of
fibrous cellulosic material or making or finishing
paper or paperboard (other than the machinery of
heading 8419); parts thereof;
2) 8419, HTSUSA, covering machinery, plant or
laboratory equipment, whether or not electrically
heated, for the treatment of materials by a process,
involving a change of temperature such as heating,
cooking, roasting, distilling, rectifying, sterilizing,
pasteurizing, steaming, drying, evaporating,
vaporizing, condensing or cooling, other than machinery
or plant of a kind used for domestic purposes;
instantaneous or storage water heaters, nonelectric;
parts thereof.
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
The General Rules of Interpretation (GRI) govern the
classification of articles under the HTSUSA. The section notes
under each section and the chapter notes for each chapter provide
additional guidance when two or more headings are relevant. Note
2(a) of section XVI states that parts which are goods included in
any of the headings of chapter 84 are in all cases classified in
their respective headings. Note 2 of chapter 84 states that a
machine or appliance which answers to a description in one or
more of the headings 8401 to 8424 and at the same time to a
description in one or more of the headings 8425 to 8480 is to be
classified under the appropriate heading of the former group and
not the latter.
Heading 8419 covers machinery for, among other things,
drying, and the parts thereto. The Yankee cylinder is used as a
principal component in the drying process on a paper-making
machine. It is manufactured with that purpose in mind. The
cylinder is the part of the machine that actually dries the paper
as the paper is passed over its outer shell.
Heading 8439 covers machinery for making or finishing paper,
and parts thereof. The Yankee cylinder is used as a part on a
machine for making paper and is an indispensable part of the
paper-making process. In fact, different types of paper can be
made depending on how the cylinder is used in the process. This
particular cylinder is popular for producing a glazed finish on
the paper. In each process, however, how the paper sheet is
dried makes the difference in the finished product. Other
factors, such as how the paper sheet is removed from the
cylinder, when it is removed, and at what speed it is removed are
just as important to the paper-making process. The cylinder's
drying function is the essential characteristic of its use no
matter what type of paper is produced. The fact that the
cylinder assists in producing different varieties of paper is
secondary to the fact that its drying function is what makes the
cylinder an integral part of the paper-making machine. Referring
back to note 2 of chapter 84, the Yankee cylinder is described in
both heading 8419 and heading 8439. Heading 8419 belongs to the
former group of headings (8401 to 8424) to which an article that
falls within this provision should be classified. No discussion
of which heading is more specific is needed here because chapter
84 note 2 directs us to heading 8419.
HOLDING:
The Yankee cylinder is properly classified under subheading
8419.32.50, covering dryers for wood, paper pulp, paper or
paperboard.
Sincerely,
John Durant, Director