Sunair Products Inc.

2329 Solona Ave Fort Worth, Texas 76117 USA

Phone (817) 831-6301 or (800) 831-6301 Fax (817) 222-7800

Email: sales@sunairusa.com Web: www.sunairusa.com

BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL

Dear Ambassador Lighthizer,

Thank you for the opportunity to request an exclusion for products of Chinese origin from the 

tariffs imposed under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. Sunair Products, Inc. (“Sunair”) 

respectfully submits these comments in support of its requested exclusion for certain types of 

belt-driven compressor units used in automotive air conditioning systems (generally referred to 

in this request as “compressors”). Sunair understands and shares the administration’s concerns 

and competitive objectives relating to China’s acts, policies, and practices investigated by your 

office and more fully described in your report published on March 22, 20181. [***]

These belt-driven compressors are made in China, but are not relevant to what we understand to 

be the target of the Section 301 tariffs—China’s acts, policies, and practices with respect to 

intellectual property and its “Made in China 2025” initiative. In fact, the importation of these 

compressors in the United States benefits U.S. interests by supporting our customers, our 

operations, and our continued investment in providing high-quality jobs and innovation in 

creating efficient supply chains that is vital to the overall competitiveness of the U.S. automotive 

market.

I. Background information

Sunair is a family owned business that began in Texas in 1984, and has since expanded to 

become one of the world’s largest suppliers of mobile air conditioning service and compressor 

remanufacturing components. Part of Sunair’s success is due to our ability to offer over 12,000 

innovative and quality tested products to customers across the globe. Every product Sunair offers 

at a competitive price is vital to maintain our company’s customer image as a reliable supplier of 

automotive a/c components. 

The compressor is responsible for assisting in the circulation and pressurization of refrigerant in 

the air conditioning system of automobiles. The core technology and principles that go into 

manufacturing compressors has existed since the 18th century.2 As such, these components are 

ubiquitous and well-established in terms of their international design and production. Sunair 

imports non-OEM versions of these compressors from its affiliated manufacturers in China, 

which are the subject of this request.

 

1 See Findings of the Investigation Into China’s Acts, Policies, and Practices Related to Technology Transfer, 

Intellectual Property, and Innovation Under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, Office of the United States Trade 

Representative, March 22, 2018. (as used in this request, the “Findings”).

2 See e.g., “Reciprocating Compressors Past, Present, and Future,” Dr. John P. Elson, Purdue Engineering, 

https://engineering.purdue.edu/Herrick/conferences/about/ReciprocatingCompressors%20-%20Jack%20Elson.pdf 
Sunair Products Inc.

2329 Solona Ave Fort Worth, Texas 76117 USA

Phone (817) 831-6301 or (800) 831-6301 Fax (817) 222-7800

Email: sales@sunairusa.com Web: www.sunairusa.com

BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL

[***]

II. Identification of the Particular Product for Exclusion

A. Applicable Tariff Code and Suggested Language

The types of compressors we seek to exclude are distinct in their appearance from other 

compressors contained under the HTSUS Code 8414.30.80. Generally, this 8-digit classification 

encompasses compressors used in forms of refrigerating equipment. The automotive 

compressors that are the basis of this request can be readily identified from other products under 

this Code based on their unique and shared characteristics which identify them as “belt driven 

compressors.”

In particular, automotive compressors fall under the category specific 10-digit HTSUS Code 

8414.30.8030 (“Compressors, refrigerating and air-conditioning, for motor vehicles.”). This 

classification is confirmed in a 2007 Customs ruling on similar refurbished compressors, 

numbered N012238 (“The tariff classification, marking and country of origin of refurbished 

compressors from Mexico.”)

This classification, on its own, is likely sufficient tariff language to identify the products as 

imported. In response to the USTR’s request for specific tariff language to describe the product, 

we suggest a potential wording may be: “Belt-driven compressors of a type used in refrigerating 

and air-conditioning equipment for motor vehicles.” 

B. Physical Description of the Product

The belt-driven compressor which is the basis of this Request is one complete, assembled item 

that measures approximately 250 to 260 millimeters in length, 146 millimeters high, and 127 

millimeters wide. While it is a single unit, it can be broken down into easily identifiable, 

constituent elements. 

On one end of the belt-driven compressor is a black metal plate that is held in place by 3 black 

bolts evenly spaced in a triangle arrangement. The black plate has a slight bump in the middle 

which does not protrude past the bolts.

Behind the plate is the pulley and coil assembly. This assembly appears as a steel, black, 

cylindrical disc with a single groove. The groove itself is approximately 12.5 millimeters wide. 

Immediately behind the grooved pulley is a black metal neck that is attached to the compressor 

body.
Sunair Products Inc.

2329 Solona Ave Fort Worth, Texas 76117 USA

Phone (817) 831-6301 or (800) 831-6301 Fax (817) 222-7800

Email: sales@sunairusa.com Web: www.sunairusa.com

BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL

The compressor body is one solid piece of aluminum, and is silver in color. The front of the 

body, near the black pulley assembly, is flat and square with a threaded hole in each corner for 

the purposes of inserting a bolt. Each side of this square portion is approximately 127 millimeters 

in length. The remaining portion of the body is cylindrical and is approximately 201 millimeters 

in length. 

At the other end of the body are four molded bolting brackets with threaded holes. These 

brackets jut out of the sides of the body. Two of these brackets are approximately 118 

millimeters apart. The other two holes are approximately 57 millimeters apart. 

On the rear surface of the body are two holes. Each hole is for connecting a hose.

These products can be easily distinguished from electric-only compressors, as those compressors 

do not have the rotating cylindrical pulley assembly as described above. Other compressors that 

are imported under the same 8-digit tariff heading are either outside of the dimensions described 

above and/or do not have a rotating cylindrical pulley assembly. 

The information in Attachment A provides additional detail that would assist the USTR and U.S. 

Customs and Border Protection (“USCBP”) in identifying and administering the exclusion of 

these products. Based on these descriptions and characteristics, we believe USCBP will be able 

to administer this exclusion request.

III. Annual Quantity and Value

Year Quantity Value

2015 [***] [***]

2016 [***] [***]

2017 [***] [***]

IV. Rationale for Exclusion

A. These compressors are not strategically important or related to “Made in 

China 2025” or other Chinese industrial programs

Compressors are extremely low-tech and low-value components that do not present a strategic 

opportunity for China to exploit in its industrial policy. Compressors are not important in this 

regard for a few reasons:

1. The design and production chains for these products is mature and does not present a 

high-tech or high-value target for China’s manufacturing sector. In fact, the design and 
Sunair Products Inc.

2329 Solona Ave Fort Worth, Texas 76117 USA

Phone (817) 831-6301 or (800) 831-6301 Fax (817) 222-7800

Email: sales@sunairusa.com Web: www.sunairusa.com

BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL

manufacture of compressors has remained relatively unchanged since China began 

manufacturing them in the mid-1980s. The low-value of these components means they 

are negligible in the scheme of China’s broader industrial objectives as they relate to the 

automotive parts industry. The production of compressors relies heavily on laborintensive assembly. 

2. These products were not selected in China’s market access rues issued in 2009 by the 

Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, which prioritized the key 

automotive technologies as batteries, drive systems, and control systems.3

3. Not only this, the compressors we import are for used vehicles and thus represent 

already developed technology that is not beneficial to China’s aim of growing its 

indigenous new-vehicle production capacity.

In addition to the above, we appreciate that the “Made in China 2025” policy focuses primarily 

on these high-tech and evolving industries: (1) steel and nonferrous metals, (2) construction 

materials, (3) rail equipment, (4) power generation and infrastructure, (5) resource development, 

(6) textiles, (7) new energy vehicles, (8) information technology, (9) machinery, (10) aviation, 

and (11) shipbuilding. In contrast, these compressors are low tech, unchanging, and are not 

related to the growth of these industries.

As far as the automotive industry is concerned, the Made in China 2025 initiative prioritizes the 

development of next-gen vehicles, including “new energy vehicles” (“NEV”) capable of being 

manufactured as a Chinese brand. While compressors are used in vehicles, an additional tariff 

will not affect China’s expansion in this sector. In fact, a tariff on compressors may undermine 

the Section 301 action’s objectives. 

Given China’s long-standing expertise and ability in producing compressors, there is no “supply 

chain gap” to close, which the Findings suggest is one of the driving forces behind China’s 

automotive policies.4 These compressors exist for the purposes of servicing existing vehicles, 

relying on designs and supply chains that have existed for over 30 years. Similarly, the maturity 

of these products means there is no platform from which their production may spur nextgeneration research and development. 

 

3 Findings, page 31.

4 Findings, page 139.
Sunair Products Inc.

2329 Solona Ave Fort Worth, Texas 76117 USA

Phone (817) 831-6301 or (800) 831-6301 Fax (817) 222-7800

Email: sales@sunairusa.com Web: www.sunairusa.com

BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL

This lack of utility is due to the fact these compressors rely on belt-driven technology for 

conventional vehicles, as opposed to the electrically powered compressors which would be used 

in NEVs.5 As it stands, these belt-driven compressors are technologically inferior to, and 

antithetical to the development of, energy-efficient technologies identified as key industrial 

objectives by the Chinese government.6

Indeed, these compressors are parts designed to prolong the longevity of vehicles which were 

manufactured outside of China. To the extent the production of these compressors affects the 

Chinese market, they are likely to detract from investment in new vehicle production. The 

existence of affordable automotive parts makes the purchase of new vehicles less attractive by 

extending the time a used car continues to run. The longer a consumer uses their car, the less 

demand there is for a new one. Not only this, U.S. demand for Chinese compressors keeps 

Chinese production focused on supplying foreign consumers. Any reduction in demand brought 

about by increased costs may result in China’s compressor industry shifting away from servicing 

foreign clients and toward the industrial goals set by the Chinese government.

Finally, the technology behind these compressors has not benefited from any nefarious acts, 

policies, or practices of the Chinese government or industry writ large. Their production does not 

rely on the cooption of any sensitive intellectual property, nor has our company been required to 

embark on any joint-venture or information-sharing scheme in order to gain access to the 

Chinese market. Put simply, the acts, policies, and practices as described in the Findings are not 

applicable to the compressors.

B. Increased tariffs on these compressors would result in significant harm to 

Sunair’s business and U.S. economic interests 

[*** ]

There is also a real ripple effect on other industries reliant on affordable compressors from 

China. The integrated nature of our supply chain means the cost of the product is passed on 

through to master distributors, warehouse distributors, retailers, repair shops, and then to the 

consumer at exacerbated prices. Given the increased cost arising from the tariff, each link in this 

supply chain will be forced to lower employment and/or wages to maintain profitability. 

 

5

In fact, the existence of the belt on the compressors under the scope of this request is one of the features that allows 

it to be distinguished from other similar products.

6 See A A Zulkifli et al 2015 IOP Conf. Ser.: Mater. Sci. Eng. 100 012028, “Impact of electric compressor for 

automotive air conditioning system on fuel consumption and performance analysis.” (finding that conventional beltdriven compressors are an order of magnitude less efficient than newer electric compressors).
Sunair Products Inc.

2329 Solona Ave Fort Worth, Texas 76117 USA

Phone (817) 831-6301 or (800) 831-6301 Fax (817) 222-7800

Email: sales@sunairusa.com Web: www.sunairusa.com

BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL

[***]

Finally, the lost sales of compressors threatens other revenue streams for our business. Not only 

are we losing out on the sale of compressors, we are losing out on the opportunity to sell 

accompanying components that provide additional, valuable revenue to our business.

C. The compressors are available only from China

China originally began producing compressors in the mid-1980s. Since then, the country has 

become one of the leading producers of compressors. The emergence of China as a supplier of 

compressors came at a time when production in the United States was in decline. In fact, only a 

few of the compressor models we offer were ever manufactured in the United States. Production 

of these models moved to China nearly 20 years ago. The nature of the automotive parts market 

means companies like ours are prohibited from acquiring the high-quality compressors we 

require from other manufacturers. As it stands, Sunair cannot supply its compressors from any 

other country, including the United States.

The compressor industry has evolved to a point where China is the only feasible supplier of 

compressors that can be purchased at the volumes required for our business. A select few of the 

compressor types we sell are made in the United States. However, these compressors are 

manufactured by original equipment manufacturers (“OEM”) that maintain their own exclusive 

supply chains that we cannot access. Moreover, the cost of producing these components is so low 

that it is not economically feasible to produce them outside of China. 

There are some third countries which produce certain types of compressors, but the products that 

are the subject of this request cannot be sourced from these countries for a variety of reasons. 

First, compressors manufactured outside of China do not meet the rigorous safety and technical 

standards required by us, and our customers, for automotive use. This is an unavoidable 

requirement of our business.

[***]

Third, no other country has the workforce capacity to come close to meeting our demand. 

Similar to the U.S. compressor market, we are unable to avail ourselves of comparable original 

equipment manufactured outside of China based on the fact these distribution networks are 

permanently captured by the manufacturer. 
Sunair Products Inc.

2329 Solona Ave Fort Worth, Texas 76117 USA

Phone (817) 831-6301 or (800) 831-6301 Fax (817) 222-7800

Email: sales@sunairusa.com Web: www.sunairusa.com

BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL

Fourth, the tariffs create an uncertain macroeconomic environment that is not conducive to 

investment. The nature of these tariffs creates significant investment risk that deters companies 

from investing in a manufacturing facility, in the United States or elsewhere, capable of 

producing these products. 

V. Conclusion

[***] In spite of this, the additional 301 tariffs would not serve the administration’s underlying 

purposes with regard to combatting China’s acts, policies, practices, or Made in China 2025 

policy as identified in the USTR’s Findings. For the reasons stated in this petition, Sunair 

requests that the USTR exclude certain automotive compressors under HTS subheading 

8414.30.8030 from the list of goods subject to the Section 301 tariffs. 

This submission contains business confidential information (“BCI”) for which Sunair requests 

confidential treatment. Pursuant to the USTR’s published procedures for Exclusion Requests, 

Sunair has identified BCI in brackets and has appropriately stamped each page containing 

business confidential information. A public version of this Request is provided simultaneously 

with Sunair BCI version. Sunair certifies that disclosure of its BCI would endanger trade secrets 

or profitability, and that the information would not be customarily released to the public. The 

undersigned further certifies that the information provided herein is complete and correct to the 

best of his knowledge.

We would be happy to work with the USTR to answer any questions or provide any additional 

information. Should you require anything, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sunair Products Inc.

2329 Solona Ave Fort Worth, Texas 76117 USA

Phone (817) 831-6301 or (800) 831-6301 Fax (817) 222-7800

Email: sales@sunairusa.com Web: www.sunairusa.com

BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL

Attachment A

[***]