Organization Name:

Note: Representatives submitting on behalf of an organization must enter information below.

Requestor Representative:

Section 301 Investigation: China's Acts, Policies, and Practices Related to Technology 

Transfer, Intellectual Property, and Innovation - Form to Request Exclusion of Product

When submitting a product exclusion request using this form, enter the specified 

information in the following fields and explain the basis and rationale for your statements. 

By completing this form, you certify that the information provided is complete and 

correct to the best of your knowledge. 

1. Indicate whether the comment contains business confidential information (BCI), is a public

document, or is a public version of a BCI document.

3.

2. Please provide a complete and detailed description of the particular product of concern:

4.

*

10-digit HTSUS item number* for product you wish to address in this product exclusion request:

Use numerical characters only with no special characters (example: 1023456789). For help in finding

the HTSUS item number associated with your product, see https://hts.usitc.gov/

7.

5. Requestor's relationship to the product:

6. Does this submission in regulations.gov include additional attachments?

Please indicate whether any additional attachment contains business confidential information 

(BCI), is a public document, or is a public version of a BCI document.

Requestor Information

Requestor Name (Last, First):

VERSION 2 CONTINUED BELOW 1
8. Is this product, or a comparable product, available from sources in the United States? (If you

9. Is this product, or a comparable product, available from sources in third countries? (If you

10. Please provide the value and quantity (with units) of the Chinese-origin product of concern

that you purchased for each calendar year specified. Limit this figure to the products

purchased by your firm (or by members of your trade association) alone. Please provide

estimates if precise figures are unavailable.

2017 Value:

2016 Value:

2015 Value:

2017 Quantity:

2016 Quantity:

2015 Quantity:

% of your total gross sales in 2017 that the Chinese-origin product accounted for.

% of the total cost of producing the final product(s) the Chinese-origin input 

accounts for.

% of your total gross sales in 2017 that sales of the final product(s) incorporating 

the input accounted for.

VERSION 2 CONTINUED BELOW 2

indicate "NO", you must provide support for your assertion in Box 12).

indicate "NO", you must provide support for your assertion in Box 12).

11. Is the Chinese-origin product of concern sold as a final product or an input used in

a) For imports sold as final products, please provide:

b) For imports of inputs used in the production of final products, please provide:

the production of a final product or products?
12. Please provide information in support your request, taking account of the

VERSION 2 END 3

instructions provided in Section B of the Federal Register notice. If you

responded "NO" to Questions 8 or 9, you must provide support for your

assertion in the box below. (Note: text entered below can extend beyond the

apparent size of this box).
Dynapac Road Construction Equipment

Dynapac North America LLC Tel: +1 (800) 651-0033 G 

342 Patricia Lane, Suite 104 www.dynapac.us

Fort Mill, SC 29708

October 4, 2018

VIA ELECTRONIC SUBMISSION

WWW.REGULATIONS.GOV PUBLIC VERSION

The Honorable Robert E. Lighthizer

United States Trade Representative

Office of the U.S. Trade Representative

600 17th Street, NW

Washington, DC 20508

Re: Request for Temporary Section 301 Exclusion (Docket Number USTR-2018-0005)

Small Diesel Powered Single Drum Vibratory Rollers classified in HTSUS 8429.40.0020

Dear Mr. Lighthizer:

Dynapac North America LLC (“Dynapac”) respectfully submits this China Section 301 

exclusion request to the United States Trade Representative (“USTR”)1for diesel-powered single 

drum vibratory rollers (“SDVR”) classified in Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States 

(“HTSUS”) subheading 8429.40.0020 and weighing less than 3,100 pounds with an operating width 

of less than 40 inches (“Small Diesel SDVRs”). Small Diesel SDVRs are machines used to compact 

material in preparation for load-bearing applications, such as paving and repairing roads. Dynapac 

requests that Small Diesel SDVRs be excluded from the Section 301 tariffs2for the following reasons:

 Small Diesel SDVRs play an important role in the development of public roads and 

other public infrastructure. Section 301 tariffs would increase costs for infrastructure 

building projects, directly harming taxpayers, particularly for projects needed in rural 

areas where tax revenues are lower.

 Small Diesel SDVRs are not produced in the United States.

 Small Diesel SDVRs are not high-tech products that are related to or strategically 

important to Chinese industrial programs like the “Made in China 2025” initiative.

Pursuant to USTR’s instructions, Dynapac is submitting both business confidential and public 

versions of this request for exclusion. The business confidential version contains information in 

brackets ([ ]), the disclosure of which would harm Dynapac’s competitive position.

 

1 See Docket USTR-2018-0025, Procedures to Consider Requests for Exclusion of Particular Products from the 

Determination of Action Pursuant to Section 301: China’s Acts, Policies, and Practices Related to Technology 

Transfer, Intellectual Property, and Innovation, 83 Fed. Reg. 32181 (July 11, 2018).

2 See Annex A of Notice of Action and Request for Public Comment Concerning Proposed Determination of 

Action Pursuant to Section 301: China’s Acts, Policies, and Practices Related to Technology Transfer, 

Intellectual Property, and Innovation, 83 Fed. Reg. 28710 (June 20, 2018) (“Annex A”).
PUBLIC VERSION

I. Company Overview

Dynapac, headquartered in Fort Mill, South Carolina, is an international leader in road 

construction equipment manufacturing. Dynapac’s machinery are used principally in road-building, 

construction and public works projects. [ 

 ]

II. Product Description

Small Diesel SDVRs are self-propelled machines that compact soil and asphalt for the 

pavement of roads, bridges and parking lots. They are essential machinery for the construction of 

roads and paths that provide the infrastructure to American communities and their economies. 

Dynapac’s Small Diesel SDVRs are purchased and used in public infrastructure projects throughout 

the United States.

Roadbuilding and other infrastructure construction projects require load-bearing subsoil. Small 

Diesel SDVRs play a crucial part in the construction process by compacting soil to prepare it for road 

construction, parking lots, and utility trenches. Small Diesel SDVRs also are used for compacting 

asphalt and bituminous materials.3 Dynapac’s CC950 model Small Diesel SDVR is shown below. 

Specification sheets for these machines are provided in Exhibit A.

CC950

A majority of small SDVRs in use are gasoline-powered. Our Small Diesel SDVRs provide 

contractors and rental companies with a low-cost diesel unit with a long life-span. They also allow 

projects to use only one fuel source if other units on a job site are diesel-powered, which also keeps 

costs down. Further, our Small Diesel SDVRs are double drum rollers in which only one drum vibrates, 

which is different than other double drum rollers and single drum rollers on the market.

Small Diesel SDVRs are classified on the HTSUS under subheading 8429.40.0020 as 

vibratory road rollers. Annex A includes all products classified in the 8-digit HTSUS subheading 

8429.40.0020, which provides:

 

3

“Bituminous material” refers to the adhesive binder material that holds together the mineral materials 

(“aggregate”) in an asphalt mix. It must be stable enough to stand up to heavy loads and keep aggregate from 

loosening but flexible enough to avoid the risk of cracking.
PUBLIC VERSION

8429 Self-propelled bulldozers, angledozers, graders, levelers, 

scrapers, mechanical shovels, excavators, shovel loaders, 

tamping machines and road rollers:

8429.40.00 Tamping machines and road rollers

New

20 Vibratory.......................................................

40 Other............................................................

60 Used

U.S. Customs & Border Protection classified vibratory road rollers under HTSUS 8429.40.00 in HQ 

089015 1991, a copy of which is attached as Exhibit B.

III. Small Diesel SDVRs Are Not Produced in the United States

Dynapac imports Small Diesel SDVRs from China where they are manufactured in a factory 

owned by Dynapac. Dynapac has no facilities in the United States that manufacture Small Diesel 

SDVRs. There is no production of small diesel double drum rollers in which only a single drum is 

vibratory in the United States by any manufacturer.

IV. Small Diesel SDVRs Are Not Strategically Important For “Made in China 2025”

Imposing tariffs on Small Diesel SDVRs would not benefit U.S. industry, nor would it further 

the USTR’s stated goals underlying the Section 301 investigation. According to the USTR’s Section 

301 Investigation findings, China’s “Made in China 2025” industrial policy is centered on promoting 

ten strategic sectors of high-technology industries. Road construction equipment is not among those 

categories. 

The Chinese government has not employed any tactics to intervene in or regulate Dynapac’s 

operations in China. It has not attempted to use discretionary administrative licensing and approval 

processes, foreign equity limitations, or foreign ownership restrictions to require or pressure Dynapac 

to transfer technology. Dynapac’s control over its intellectual property and technology in China has 

not been undermined, and the Chinese government has not directed or facilitated investment in or 

acquisition or Dynapac’s assets or intellectual property. Dynapac is similarly unaware of any data 

breaches or attacks on any Dynapac facilities in China. The Chinese government does not consider 

Dynapac’s road construction equipment to be an area of strategic concern for its industrial policies. 

Imposing additional tariffs on such machinery would only harm American interests and would not have 

a material effect on China’s acts, policies, and practices used to acquire foreign technology that are 

at issue in the USTR’s Section 301 orders. 

V. Infrastructure Investment For The Domestic Economy

President Trump emphasized in his January 2017 State of the Union address, national goals 

for developing public infrastructure: “We will build gleaming new roads, bridges, highways, railways, 

and waterways all across our land. And we will do it with American heart, American hands, and 

American grit.” In a February 2018 policy statement, President Trump committed to the development 

of “new investments ... in rural America, which has been left behind for too long,” and to the removal 

of “regulatory barriers that needlessly get in the way of infrastructure projects.”4 The Congressional 

 

4 See https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/building-stronger-america-president-donald-j-trumpsamerican-infrastructure-initiative/. 
PUBLIC VERSION

Research Service also issued a report on January 24, 2018, regarding the Economic Impact of 

Infrastructure Investment, concluding that spending money to restore domestic infrastructure is a wise 

investment that will create jobs, stimulate the economy, and fix the nation’s road, bridges, pipelines, 

railways, ports, and airports. State and local tax dollars already are stretched very thin. Any increase 

in costs of equipment for the development of roadbuilding projects places an additional burden on 

taxpayers.

Small Diesel SDVRs are used in the construction of roads and trenches, particularly in rural 

areas. Small Diesel SDVRs must be imported for these projects because of their suitability for smaller 

projects and because they are not manufactured in the United States.

VI. Disproportionate Economic Harm To U.S. Interests

Dynapac understands that the purpose of the Section 301 tariffs is to eliminate unfair Chinese 

trade practices relating to the misappropriation of United States intellectual property and technology. 

The imposition of these tariffs is intended to be practicable and effective to obtain the elimination of 

acts, policies and practices viewed as detrimental. Imposing tariffs on these products would cause 

disproportionate economic harm to U.S. interests, including small- or medium-size businesses and 

consumers. These products are sold to small- and medium-size companies that service state and 

local road development and other infrastructure projects. The imposition of tariffs on Dynapac’s Small 

Diesel SDVRs would negatively affect these American consumers and economic producers.

There is no U.S. production of Small Diesel SDVRs, and thus no U.S. producers stand to derive 

any benefit from these tariffs. U.S. consumers who purchase Dynapac’s equipment for public works 

construction projects, and the taxpayers who fund such projects and stand to benefit from them, would 

be harmed by the increased cost burdens of tariffs on Small Diesel SDVRs. Such additional costs 

would disproportionately impact rural communities where tax revenues are lower and improved road 

infrastructure is in desperate need to connect such communities to greater opportunities in the U.S. 

economy. Dynapac’s equipment is used in the construction and repair of roads that are central to 

President Trump’s proposal to rebuild infrastructure and increase American economic growth and 

prosperity. Failure to progress on the White House’s directive to invest in American infrastructure 

would only result in harm to the American economy and U.S. interests.

VII. Proposed Exclusion

Dynapac respectfully requests that the USTR exclude from Annex A Small Diesel SDVRs 

classified under HTSUS subheading 8429.40.0020. Small Diesel SDVRs, as noted above, may be 

further defined, if necessary, as Small Diesel SDVRs weighing less than 3,100 pounds with an 

operating width of less than 40 inches.

Respectfully submitted,

Brian Bieller

President

Dynapac North America, LLC.
Exhibit A


Exhibit B
 HQ 089015

 JULY 26, 1991

CLA-2:CO:R:C:M 089015 JAS

CATEGORY: Classification

TARIFF NO. 8429.40.00

Bruce Benedict

John V. Carr & Son, Inc.

50 Monroe Ave., N.W., Suite 250

Grand Rapids, Michigan 40503

RE: Soil Compactors; Vibrating Earth Compacting Machines

Dear Sir:

 In your letter of March 18, 1991, on behalf of J. I. Case,

Inc., Racine, Wisc., you inquire as to the tariff status of

certain vibrating compactors from Germany. Literature was

submitted. Our ruling follows.

FACTS:

 Your inquiry relates to the following models:

 SL1 Rammer 900 Plate Compactor

 SL2 Rammer 1300 Plate Compactor

 AT22 Reversible Plate Compactor 50 Vibratory Roller

 AT40 Reversible Plate Compactor 70 Vibratory Roller

 600 Plate Compactor

 Submitted Literature describes a series of power rollers,

vibrators and compactors for use in road work, construction,

asphalt paving and other earthworks applications. The listed

models weigh from 127 lbs. to 1587 lbs. and are hand operated or

controlled from behind by means of handlebars or yokes utilizing

a self-contained, non-electric (gasoline) motor.

ISSUE:

 Whether the listed models are self-propelled compacting

machines of heading 8429.

 - 2 -

LAW AND ANALYSIS:

 Merchandise is classifiable under the Harmonized Tariff

Schedule of the United States Annotated (HTSUSA) in accordance
with the General Rules of Interpretation (GRIs). GRI 1 states in

part that for legal purposes, classification shall be determined

according to the terms of the headings and any relative section

or chapter notes, and provided the headings or notes do not

require otherwise, according to GRIs 2 through 6.

 The Explanatory Notes (ENs) constitute the Customs

Cooperation Council's official interpretation of the Harmonized

System. While not legally binding on the contracting parties,

and therefore not dispositive, the ENs provide a commentary on

the scope of each heading of the Harmonized System and are thus

useful in ascertaining the classification of merchandise under

the System. Customs believes the notes should always be

consulted. See T.D. 89-80.

 Relevant ENs indicate that the machines of heading 8429

include self-propelled compacting machines, to include tamping

machines and road rollers, both of which are used in road

building. These are to be distinguished from certain earth

compacting rammers classified in heading 8467 as tools for

working in the hand. The ENs indicate the expression "tools for

working in the hand" relates to tools designed to be held in the

hand during use. It also covers heavier tools such as earth

rammers which are portable and can be lifted and moved by hand by

the user, in particular while work is in progress, and which are

designed to be controlled and directed by hand during operation.

To obviate the fatigue of taking their full weight during

operation they may be used with auxiliary supporting devices such

as tripods, jacklegs and overhead lifting tackle.

 Heading 8467 expressly excludes tools which, because of

their weight, size, etc., obviously cannot be used in the hand as

described. This is significant because literature on the models

SL1 and SL2 advertises transport wheels as optional equipment.

If these models are imported with these wheels attached, then the

issue of their portability for heading 8467 purposes is raised.

This does not appear to be the case here.

HOLDING:

 The nine (9) models of the vibratory compactors and road

rollers in issue are provided for in heading 8429. They are

 - 3 -

classifiable in subheading 8429.40.00, HTSUSA, tamping machines

and road rollers. The rate of duty is 2.5 percent ad valorem.

 Sincerely,

 John Durant, Director

Commercial Rulings Division