Bus duct classification turns on product design: uninsulated, multi-component systems fall under Heading 8537.00.

Bus ducts were classified by reference to their physical characteristics and composition rather than the Revenue's earlier reliance on insulated bus-bar arrangements. The product in issue was found to be uninsulated and not an arrangement of bus bars in an insulated box; it was also described as a combination of more than two items, including CTS, control terminals, junction boxes and plug sockets. On that basis, the later reasoning for similar bus ducts supported classification under Heading 8537.00 rather than Heading 8544.00, and the Revenue's appeal failed.

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Issues: Whether bus ducts manufactured by the respondent were classifiable under Heading 8544.00 or under Heading 8537.00 of the Central Excise Tariff Act.

Analysis: The classification turned on the nature of the product. The earlier view relied on by Revenue concerned bus ducts described as an arrangement of bus bars in an insulated box, which had been treated as falling under Heading 8544.00. On the facts of the present case, the product was found to be different, being uninsulated and not an arrangement of bus bars in an insulated box. The product was also described as a combination of more than two items such as CTS, control terminals, junction boxes and plug sockets. In these circumstances, the reasoning applied in the later decision concerning similar bus ducts supported classification under Heading 8537.00.

Conclusion: The bus ducts were held classifiable under Heading 8537.00, and the Revenue's appeal failed.

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