Customs classification of composite paper-machine parts turned on ceramic content and principal use, not the ceramic exclusion.

Imported outsert blades and deckle seals made partly of ceramic material were treated as parts of paper-making machinery rather than ceramic articles. Their design and function showed that they were used solely or principally with a particular machine to extract excess water during sheet formation, bringing them within the scheme of Section Note 2 of Section XVI and the heading for machinery for making paper. The higher proportion of non-ceramic material, supported by evidence that only about 40% of the goods was ceramic by weight, meant they did not retain the character of ceramic articles and were outside the ceramic exclusion in Chapter Note 1(b) to Chapter 84. They were accordingly classifiable under sub-heading 8439.99.

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Issues: Whether the imported outsert blades and deckle seals, composed partly of ceramic material, retained the character of ceramic articles excluded from Chapter 84 of the Customs Tariff Act, 1975, or were classifiable as parts of paper making machinery under sub-heading 8439.99.

Analysis: The goods were designed for use as component parts of paper making machinery and performed the function of extracting excess water during sheet formation. Although the lower authorities treated the functional portion as ceramic and applied the exclusion in Chapter Note 1(b) to Chapter 84, the determining test was whether the goods had, by reason of their composition, lost the character of ceramic articles. The higher proportion of non-ceramic material, together with the supplier's certificate showing that only about 40% of the goods was ceramic by weight, supported the conclusion that the articles were combinations with a high proportion of other materials and therefore fell outside the ceramic exclusion. The goods were also suitable solely or principally for use with a particular machine, bringing them within the scheme of Section Note 2 of Section XVI and the heading covering machinery for making or finishing paper.

Conclusion: The imported outsert blades and related deckle seals were not classifiable under Heading 69.14 as ceramic articles and were correctly classifiable under sub-heading 8439.99 as parts of paper making machinery, in favour of the assessee.

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