HQ 086364: Dref yarn used for construction of automobile clutch facingsare glass yarns.

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 086364

                        November 20, 1990




CLA-2 CO:R:C:G  086364  HP

CATEGORY:  Classification

TARIFF NO.:  7019.10.1000

Ms. Ann M. Williams
A.N. Deringer, Inc.
30 West Service Road
Champlain, NY 12919-9703

RE:  Dref yarn used for construction of automobile clutch facings
are glass yarns.

Dear Ms. Williams:

     This is in reply to your letter of January 17, 1990,
concerning the tariff classification of yarn, produced in Canada,
under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States
Annotated (HTSUSA).  Please reference your client Garlock du
Canada Limite.

FACTS:

     The merchandise at issue consists of "DREF " yarn1, style
number 295 GCR.  Additional materials submitted by Garlock state
that the DREF  yarn is used exclusively in the production of
friction materials in the automotive industry.  The finished
product is commonly knows as clutch facings.










     1The DREF  2 friction spinning machine works as follows: the
separation  of the individual fibers is carried out by a rotating
carding  drum, the sliver retention  and the draft being provided
by  a specially designed inlet system.  The individual fibers are
stripped from  the  carding drum  by  centrifugal force  and  are
transplanted  into the  nip between  the two  perforated spinning
drums  supported by an air-flow.  The  fibers are then twisted by
mechanical friction  on the surfaces  of the two  spinning drums,
which  rotate  in  the  same  direction.    Suction  through  the
perforated assists this process.  The formation of the yarn takes
place  from the inside out by the superimposition and twisting of
the  individual  fibers.    This  guarantees  strong  inter-fiber
binding.  If several slivers are  being fed into the machine, the
fibers  from the sliver farthest  from the outlet  are bound into
the  yarn core.  The spun yarn is drawn off from the yarn forming
zone at  speeds of up  to 300 m/min  by outlet rollers  and wound
onto cross-wound bobbins.

     The DREF  yarn, as imported into the United States, is
constructed of a glass, rayon and cotton sheathe (blended using
conventional carding methods) encasing a core of continuous glass
filaments coated with phenolic.  After entry, the end user
impregnates the yarn, then winds the coated yarns together to
form a "biscuit."  This biscuit is then pressed and cured to form
the clutch facing.  After holes are drilled and edges trimmed,
the facing is ready to be used in the automotive industry.

     The composition of the DREF  yarn is as follows:

             ITEM                          % RAW MATERIAL

   Fiberglass non-continuous                    15.00
           filament

         Cotton fiber                           21.25

Fiberglass continuous filament                  47.50

             Rayon                              16.25



ISSUE:

     Whether the instant yarns are cordage for technical uses
under the HTSUSA?

LAW AND ANALYSIS:

     Heading 5911, HTSUSA, provides for, inter alia, cords,
braids and the like, whether or not coated, impregnated, or
reinforced with metal, of a kind used in industry as packing or
lubricating materials.  We have often held that yarn constructed
in this wrapping manner falls under the designation of "cords,
braids and the like."  See HRL 085499 of March 29, 1990 (not
required to be twine, rope or braid, only something that re-
sembles, in appearance and use, cord and braid).  This yarn,
however, is not used as packing or lubricating materials; indeed,
its sole purpose is in the construction of friction materials.
Classification in heading 5911, HTSUSA, is therefore
inappropriate.

     Heading 8708, HTSUSA, provides for, inter alia, motor
vehicle clutches and parts thereof.  The Explanatory Notes (EN)
to the HTSUSA constitute the official interpretation of the
tariff at the international level.  While not legally binding,
they do represent the considered views of classification experts
of the Harmonized System Committee.  It has therefore been the
practice of the Customs Service to follow, whenever possible, the
terms of the Explanatory Notes when interpreting the HTSUSA.  The
EN to this heading states:

               This heading covers parts and
          accessories of the motor vehicles of headings
          87.07 to 87.05, provided the parts and
          accessories [are]

               (i)  ... identifiable as being
                    suitable for use solely or
                    principally with the above-
                    mentioned vehicles....

     While we agree that, IN THEIR FINISHED FORM, the clutch
facings are so identifiable, the yarn to construct these facings,
in their condition as imported, are not.  To illustrate this lack
of identification, the yarns at issue were mistakenly identified
as valve packing yarns not only by this office and our New York
office, but by you as well. In addition, the complex construction
procedure, as described in Note 1, supra, causes us to disallow
classification of the DREF  yarns as parts of clutches.  Heading
8708, therefore, is inappropriate.

     The DREF  yarn is composed of both glass and textile.  The
General Rules of Interpretation (GRIs) to the HTSUSA govern the
classification of goods in the tariff schedule.  GRI 1 states, in
pertinent part, that:

     ... classification shall be determined according to the
     terms of the headings and any relative section or
     chapter notes ...

Goods which cannot be classified in accordance with GRI 1 are to
be classified in accordance with subsequent GRIs, taken in order.

     GRI 3 states, in pertinent part:

          When by application of Rule 2(b) [goods of
          more than one material or substance] or for
          any other reason, goods are, prima facie,
          classifiable under two or more headings,
          classification shall be effected as follows:

                              * * *

          (b)  Mixtures, composite goods
               consisting of different materials
               or made up of different components,
               ... which cannot be classified by
               reference to 3(a) [which requires
               that goods be classified, if
               possible, under the more specific
               of the competing provisions], shall
               be classified as if they consisted
               of the material or component which
               gives them their essential
               character, insofar as this
               criterion is applicable.

     Explanatory Note (IX) to GRI 3 provides:

          For the purposes of [GRI 3(b)], composite
          goods made up of different components shall
          be taken to mean not only those in which the
          components are attached to each other to form

          a practically inseparable whole but also
          those with separable components, provided
          these components are adapted to one another
          and are mutually complementary and that
          together they form a whole which would not
          normally be offered for sale in separate parts.

     [C]lassification [of composite goods] is made according
     to the component, or components taken together, which
     can be regarded as conferring on the [good] as a whole
     its essential character.

     The factors which determine essential character of an
article will vary from case to case.  It may be the nature of the
materials or the components, its bulk, quantity, weight, value,
or the role a material plays in relation to the use of the goods.
In general, essential character has been construed to mean the
attribute which strongly marks or serves to distinguish what an
article is; that which is indispensable to the structure or
condition of an article.

     The glass portion represents 62.5% of the finished yarn, and
approximately 65% of its cost.  It provides the yarn with both
its tensile properties and heat resistance.  The textile portion,
on the other hand, is present merely to absorb the resins sprayed
on the yarns during the clutch facing.  It is our opinion,
therefore, that the glass imparts the essential character of the
DREF  yarn.

HOLDING:

     As a result of the foregoing, the instant merchandise is
classified under subheading 7019.10.1000, HTSUSA, textile
category 201, as glass fibers (including glass wool) and articles
thereof (for example, yarn, woven fabrics), slivers, rovings,
yarn and chopped strands, yarns, not colored.  Articles which
meet the definition of "goods originating in the territory of
Canada" (see General Note 3(c)(vii)(B), HTSUSA) are subject to
reduced rates of duty under the United States-Canada Free Trade
Agreement Implementation Act of 1988.  If the merchandise
constitutes "goods originating in the territory of Canada," the
applicable rate of duty is 5.9 percent ad valorem; otherwise, the
general rate of duty is 7.4 percent ad valorem.

     The designated textile and apparel category may be
subdivided into parts.  If so, visa and quota requirements
applicable to the subject merchandise may be affected.  Since
part categories are the result of international bilateral
agreements which are subject to frequent negotiations and
changes, to obtain the most current information available, we
suggest that you check, close to the time of shipment, the Status
Report On Current Import Quotas (Restraint Levels), an issuance
of the U.S. Customs Service, which is updated weekly and is
available at your local Customs office.

     Due to the changeable nature of the statistical annotation
(the ninth and tenth digits of the classification) and the
restraint (quota/visa) categories, you should contact your local
Customs office prior to importing the merchandise to determine
the current status of any import restraints or requirements.

                            Sincerely,




                      John Durant, Director
                   Commercial Rulings Division