CBP Finds U.S. is Country of Origin for Certain Uninterruptible Power Supplies
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has issued a final determination that the U.S. is the country of origin for certain uninterruptible power supplies called “InfraStruXure” Solutions and two of its units, for purposes of U.S. government procurement.
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The final determination was issued at the request of APC by Schneider Electric (APC).
(CBP issues country of origin advisory rulings and final determinations on whether an article is or would be a product of a designated country or instrumentality for the purpose of granting waivers of certain ‘‘Buy American’’ restrictions in U.S. law or practice for products offered for sale to the U.S. government.)
Design, Final Assembly & Customization Occurs in U.S. with Mostly Foreign Parts
The determination concerns APC’s “InfraStruXure®” Solutions (ISX) and two of its units1:Symmetra PX UPS and Symmetra MW UPS.
The Symmetra PX UPS modules are assembled in the Philippines, where a version of the operating system, developed in the U.S., Denmark and Ireland, is also installed. The main components of the Symmetra MW, which is designed for large data centers, are assembled in India where firmware, partly developed in the U.S., is added.
These items are then shipped to the U.S. where final assembly at the customer’s U.S. premises takes place. Every ISX is designed by certified APC sales/systems engineers based in the U.S. The design process involves site visits, surveys and audits of the customer’s facility and can take from several hours to several days. Once the customer’s requirements are known and the components imported, the systems are assembled, configured, networked, programmed and integrated by APC field service engineers at the customer’s facility. This process can take from several hours for small systems to several weeks for large systems and must be performed by trained technicians and licensed electricians.
CBP Finds Substantial Transformation Occurs in U.S.
Based on the facts provided, CBP finds that the assembly and programming operations performed in the U.S. on the units of the ISX give rise to a new and different article (an ISX) and impart the essential character of the ISX. Likewise, the assembly and programming operations performed in the U.S. on the components of the UPS units of the ISX give rise to a new and different article (a UPS unit).
Therefore, CBP has determined that the ISX and the two UPS units described in this ruling are to be considered products of the U.S. for purposes of government procurement.
Any Party-at-Interest May Request Judicial Review by Oct 15
CBP states that any party-at-interest, as defined in 19 CFR 177.22(d), may seek judicial review of this final determination by October 15, 2010. In addition, under 19 CFR 177.31, any party-at-interest other than the party which requested this final determination may request that CBP reexamine the matter anew and issue a new final determination.
1At the company’s request, a final determination on the Rack Enclosures/Assemblies for the ISX, when imported separately, will be addressed in other correspondence.
CBP contact -- Heather Pinnock (202) 325-0034
(FR Pub 09/15/10, H107335)