HQ 955415: Positioning Tool; Explanatory Note 87.16; Non-Mechanically Propelled Vehicle

Native CBP ruling rendition. Applicability is fact-specific; modification/revocation relationships and original publisher date are retained. Publisher sentinel year0001 means unknown date, not a historical legal adoption.

                               HQ 955415
                           February 09, 1994


CLA-2 CO:R:C:M 955415 DWS

CATEGORY: Classification

TARIFF NO.: 8716.80.50

Mr. Brian Johnson
Border Brokerage Company
P.O. Box 3549
Blaine, WA 98231

RE: Positioning Tool; Explanatory Note 87.16; Non-Mechanically
    Propelled Vehicle

Dear Mr. Johnson:

     This is in response to your letter of October 8, 1993, on
behalf of Ebco Industries, to the Regional Commissioner of Customs,
New York, concerning the classification of a positioning tool under
the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS).  Your
letter has been referred to this office for a response.

FACTS:

     The merchandise consists of a positioning tool (PT), a product
of Canada.  The PT is specifically designed to hold aircraft parts
and is used exclusively by the aerospace industry.  It is comprised
of a steel wheeled base supporting a steel dolly assembly and
measures approximately 8 feet 4 inches x 6 feet 6 inches.  The
dolly assembly is designed to hold in place a piece of metal while
transporting the metal approximately 20 to 30 feet into a stream
of water.  A separate machine sprays a stream of water at the metal
piece so that engineers can determine if the metal has been
sufficiently machined to be considered acceptable for the metal
piece's intended purpose.  The PT is guided manually (it possesses
neither an engine nor a winch system) into the stream of water by
use of a loading ramp which measures 18 feet x 9 feet, rising 2
feet off the ground.  The presence of a beam, track, and grating
ensures that the PT is in an exact position when the water strikes
the metal piece which is being tested.  

      The subheading under consideration is as follows:

     8716.80.50: . . . other vehicles, not mechanically 
                 propelled . . . : [o]ther vehicles: [o]ther.

     The general, column one rate of duty for goods classifiable
     under this provision is 3.2 percent ad valorem.

ISSUE:

     Whether the positioning tool is classifiable under subheading
8716.80.50, HTSUS, as an other vehicle, not mechanically propelled.

LAW AND ANALYSIS:

     Classification of merchandise under the HTSUS is in accordance
with the General Rules of Interpretation (GRI's), taken in order. 
GRI 1 provides that classification is determined according to the
terms of the headings and any relative section or chapter notes.

     In understanding the language of the HTSUS, the Harmonized
Commodity Description and Coding System Explanatory Notes may be
utilized.  The Explanatory Notes, although not dispositive, are to
be used to determine the proper interpretation of the HTSUS.  54
Fed. Reg. 35127, 35128 (August 23, 1989).  In part, Explanatory
Note 87.16 (pp. 1439 - 1440) states that:

     [t]his heading covers a group of non-mechanically propelled
     vehicles (other than those of the preceding headings)
     equipped with one or more wheels and constructed for the
     transport of goods or persons. . . 

     The vehicles of this heading are designed to be towed by
     other vehicles . . . to be pushed or pulled by hand or to
     be drawn by animals.

     The heading includes:

     (A) xxx

     (B) Hand propelled vehicles.

         This group includes:

         (1) Trucks and trolleys of various kinds including those
             specialised for use in particular industries (in the
             textile or ceramic industries, in dairies, etc.).

         (2) - (8) xxx

     It is our position that, because no other provision under the
HTSUS specifically describes the merchandise, the PT is
classifiable under subheading 8716.80.50, HTSUS.  It is a manually
and non-mechanically propelled vehicle which is constructed for the
transport of aircraft parts.  Although the PT does not travel far
distances, it still transports metal pieces from one point to
another.  Also, the PT is designed for specialized use in the
aerospace industry.

HOLDING:

     The positioning tool is classifiable under subheading
8716.80.50, HTSUS, as an other vehicle, not mechanically propelled.

                              Sincerely,



                            John Durant, Director