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HQ W968439




December 19, 2006

CLA-2 RR:CTF:TCM W968439 BtB

CATEGORY: CLASSIFICATION

TARIFF NO.: 6806.90.0090

Richard R. Walker
V. Alexander & Company, Inc.
3286 Northpark Blvd., Suite D
Alcoa, TN 37701-3127

RE: Classification of three Microtherm® insulation products

Dear Mr. Walker:

This is in reply to your letter dated May 4, 2006, to the National Commodity Specialist Division in New York, on behalf of Microtherm, Inc., submitted pursuant to 19 C.F.R. §177, requesting the classification under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States Annotated (“HTSUSA”) of three Microtherm® insulation products. Your letter has been forwarded to this office for reply.

FACTS:

Product literature states the following about the products at issue:

MICROTHERM® Insulation is a high performance thermal insulation manufactured from carefully formulated mixtures of finely divided amorphous silica, metal oxides and glass filament. This forms a microporous structure designed to minimize the transmission of heat over a large temperature range. The thermal performance of MICROTHERM® Insulation can be three or four times better than other more conventional insulation products.

The three Microtherm® products at issue are specifically identified as: (i) the Microtherm® Super G Slatted Panel, (ii) the Microtherm® Super G Quilted Panel, and (iii) the Microtherm® Super G Panel. As their names suggest, each of these products is in panel form. You provided samples of these products, as well as samples of the raw materials from which they are manufactured. The composition of each of these articles was tested at a U.S. Customs and Border Protection laboratory. Additionally, you had the composition of the products tested by two independent laboratories and you included copies of their laboratory reports with your letter. In your letter, you stated:

Microtherm® is not composed of any kind of slag wool, rock wool, mineral wool, or any similar material. It is not formed from mineral fibers, and is not melted, blown, or extruded into fibers.

Microtherm® contains no expanded or exfoliated vermiculite, perlite, chlorite, obsidian or similar material obtained by heat treatment.

Microtherm® contains no expanded clay, foamed slag or similar material, or any intermixture thereof.

Microtherm® is never fired.

You indicated that the products at issue are composed mainly of silica (approximately 65%), titania (approximately 30%) and alumina powders which have been compacted in a hydraulic press. There are also several trace materials in the products which individually amount to less than .50% of each product. The CBP laboratory reports and the independent laboratory reports, as well as other product literature that you provided, confirm this composition. CBP testing also confirmed that each product has heat-insulating properties.

You stated that the products at issue are widely employed in the metallurgy and the glass industry to construct the linings of vessels containing molten metals and glasses. You state that the products are good heat insulators that are able to withstand rapid changes in temperature, with an extremely low coefficient of thermal expansion.

You assert that the products at issue are properly classified in subheading 6806.90.0090, HTSUSA, which provides for: “Slag wool, rock wool and similar mineral wools; exfoliated vermiculite, expanded clays, foamed slag and similar expanded mineral materials; mixtures and articles of heat-insulating, sound-insulating or sound absorbing mineral materials, other than those of heading 6811 or 6812, or of chapter 69: Other.”

ISSUE:

What is the classification of the three Microtherm® insulation products?

LAW AND ANALYSIS:

Classification under the HTSUSA is made in accordance with the General Rules of Interpretation (“GRI”). GRI 1 provides, in part, that classification decisions are to be "determined according to the terms of the headings and any relative section or chapter notes." If the goods cannot be classified solely on the basis of GRI 1, and if the headings and legal notes do not otherwise require, the remaining GRI may then be applied, in order.

The Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System Explanatory Notes (“EN”) constitute the official interpretation of the Harmonized System at the international level (for the 4 digit headings and the 6 digit subheadings) and facilitate classification under the HTSUSA by offering guidance in understanding the scope of the headings and GRI. While neither legally binding nor dispositive of classification issues, the EN provide commentary on the scope of each heading of the HTSUSA and are generally indicative of the proper interpretation of the headings. See T.D. 89-80, 54 Fed. Reg. 35127-28 (Aug. 23, 1989).

In the classification process, it is first necessary to determine a single correct heading for the merchandise at issue before any consideration of subheadings. See Orlando Food Corp. v. United States, 140 F.3d 1437 (Fed. Cir. 1998). Heading 6806, HTSUSA, provides for: “Slag wool, rock wool and similar mineral wools; exfoliated vermiculite, expanded clays, foamed slag and similar expanded mineral materials; mixtures and articles of heat-insulating, sound-insulating or sound absorbing mineral materials, other than those of heading 6811 or 6812, or of chapter 69.”

We agree that the products at issue are classified in heading 6806, HTSUSA. The products are mixtures of heat-insulating mineral materials other than those of heading 6811 or 6812, or of chapter 69.

Heading 6811, HTSUSA, provides for: “Articles of asbestos-cement, of cellulose fiber-cement or the like.” Heading 6812, HTSUSA, provides for: “Fabricated asbestos fibers; mixtures with a basis of asbestos or with a basis of asbestos and magnesium carbonate; articles of such mixtures or of asbestos (for example, thread, woven fabric, clothing, headgear, footwear, gaskets), whether or not reinforced, other than goods of heading 6811 or 6813.” Chapter 69 provides for ceramic products which have been fired after shaping. The products at issue do not include mineral materials classified in heading 6811, 6812, or chapter 69. They are clearly described as such in all of the product literature that you furnished with your letter and it has been verified that each product is a heat-insulating mixture of mineral materials.

In relevant part, the EN to heading 6806 state:

Subject to the tolerances concerning the asbestos content (referred to below), this heading also covers heat-insulating, sound-insulating or sound-absorbing mixtures of mineral materials in bulk, e.g., mixtures composed essentially of kieselguhr, siliceous fossil meals, magnesium carbonate, etc., often with added plaster, slag, powdered cork, sawdust or wood shavings, textile fibres, etc. The mineral wools described above may also form part of such mixtures which, in the mass, are used as packing materials, in the insulation of ceilings, roofs, walls, etc.

The heading includes articles, usually of low density, made from the above products or mixtures (e.g., blocks, sheets, bricks, tiles, tubes, cylinder shells, cords, pads). These articles may be artificially coloured in the mass, impregnated with fireproof substances, faced with paper, or reinforced with metal.

While the substances in their mixtures may not be named in the EN to heading 6806, the products at issue are certainly heat-insulating mixtures of mineral materials that feature a low density from being compacted in a hydraulic press. Additionally, while “panels” are not named in the EN, “sheets” are named and we see virtually no difference between the two words in the context of the EN.

Considering the above, the products at issue are classified in subheading 6806.90.00, HTSUSA, the subheading covering merchandise named in the third part of heading 6806, HTSUSA. As the products are mixtures of heat-insulating mineral materials that are not of molded calcium silicate, they are specifically provided for by subheading 6806.90.0090, HTSUSA.

HOLDING:

The three Microtherm® products identified as the Microtherm® Super G Slatted Panel, the Microtherm® Super G Quilted Panel, and the Microtherm® Super G Panel are individually classified in subheading 6806.90.0090, HTSUSA, which provides for: “Slag wool, rock wool and similar mineral wools; exfoliated vermiculite, expanded clays, foamed slag and similar expanded mineral materials; mixtures and articles of heat-insulating, sound-insulating or sound absorbing mineral materials, other than those of heading 6811 or 6812, or of chapter 69: Other, Other: Other.” The column-one duty rate under the 2006 HTSUSA is “Free.”

Duty rates are provided for your convenience and are subject to change. The text of the most recent HTSUSA and the accompanying duty rates are provided on the world wide web at www.usitc.gov.

Sincerely,

Gail A. Hamill, Chief

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