Rough sawn timber waste was not a manufactured product because no distinct commercial commodity emerged for excise purposes.

Cut pieces of rough sawn timber cleared as timber waste during veneer and plywood manufacture did not become a distinct commercial commodity. Rough sawing caused no transformation into an identifiable article of wood with a different name, character, or use, so the goods remained timber even if they could be used elsewhere. On that basis, they were not a manufactured product and no central excise duty was attracted.

---

---

Issues: Whether cut pieces of rough sawn timber, cleared as timber waste in the course of manufacturing veneers and plywood, constituted a manufactured product liable to central excise duty.

Analysis: The goods were found to be merely cut pieces of rough sawn timber. Even if they could be put to some other use, such as in the manufacture of wooden furniture, they did not cease to be timber and did not acquire the form of identifiable articles of wood. The process of rough sawing did not bring about any transformation of the timber into a different commercial commodity having a distinct name, character or use.

Conclusion: The timber waste did not amount to a manufactured product and no central excise duty was attracted.

---