Form 332-487b Wood Flooring and Hardwood Plywood Importers Questionnai

OMB No. xxxx-xxxx/USITC No. xx-x-xxx; Expiration Date: xxxxxxx

(No response is required if currently valid OMB control number is not displayed)

Confidential Business Information

WOOD FLOORING AND HARDWOOD PLYWOOD:

COMPETITIVE CONDITIONS AFFECTING THE U.S. INDUSTRIES

IMPORTERS’ QUESTIONNAIRE

Return completed questionnaire to:

UNITED STATES INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION

Office of Industries, Natural Resources and Metals Division, Room 511-A

500 E Street, SW, Washington, DC 20436

So as to be received by the Commission by no later than October 30, 2007

The information called for in this questionnaire is for use by the United States International Trade Commission in connection with its investigation concerning solid and engineered wood flooring and/or hardwood plywood (inv. No. 332-487). The information in the questionnaire is requested under the authority of section 332(g) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. § 1332(g)). This report is mandatory and failure to reply as directed can result in a subpoena or other order to compel the submission of records or information in your possession (19 U.S.C. § 1333(a)).

Name of firm

Address

City State Zip code

World Wide Web address

Has your firm imported wood flooring and/or hardwood plywood (as defined in the instruction booklet) at any time since January 1, 2002?

NO (Sign the certification below and promptly return only this page of the questionnaire to the Commission)

YES (Read the instruction booklet carefully, complete all parts of the questionnaire, sign the certification, and return the entire questionnaire to the Commission)

CERTIFICATION

The undersigned certifies that the information herein supplied in response to this questionnaire is complete and correct to the best of his/her knowledge and belief and understand that the information submitted is subject to audit and verification by the Commission. Section 332(g) provides that the Commission may not release information which the Commission considers to be confidential business information, unless the party submitting the confidential business information had notice, at the time of submission, that such information would be released by the Commission, or such party subsequently consents to the release of the information. The Senate Committee on Finance, the requestor of this investigation, has requested that the Commission provide a nonconfidential (public) report.

The undersigned acknowledges that information submitted in this questionnaire response and throughout this investigation may be used by the Commission, its employees, and contract personnel who are acting in the capacity of Commission employees, for developing or maintaining the records of this investigation or related proceedings for which this information is submitted, or in internal audits and investigations relating to the programs and operations of the Commission pursuant to 5 U.S.C. Appendix 3. The undersigned understands that all contract personnel will sign non-disclosure agreements.

Name and Title of Authorized Official Date

( ) ( )

Signature of Authorized Official Phone Fax

Email address

PART I.--GENERAL QUESTIONS

The questions in this questionnaire have been reviewed with market participants to ensure that issues of concern are adequately addressed and that data requests are sufficient, meaningful, and as limited as possible. Public reporting burden for this questionnaire is estimated to average 50 hours per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering the data needed, and completing and reviewing the questionnaire. Send comments regarding the accuracy of this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing the burden, to the Office of Industries, Natural Resources and Metals Division, U.S. International Trade Commission, 500 E Street, SW, Washington, DC 20436.

I-1. Please report below the actual number of hours required and the cost to your firm of preparing the reply to this questionnaire and completing the form. hours dollars

I-2. Is your firm owned, in whole or in part, by any other firm?

No Yes--List the following information.

Extent of

Firm name Address ownership

I-3. Does your firm or any related firms, either domestic or foreign, engage in importing solid or engineered wood flooring and/or hardwood plywood into the United States?

No Yes--List the following information.

Firm name Address Product

I-4. Does your firm or any related firms, either domestic or foreign, engage in exporting solid or engineered wood flooring and/or hardwood plywood into the United States?

No Yes--List the following information.

Firm name Address Product

I-6. Who should be contacted regarding the information in this questionnaire?

Company contact:

Name and title

Phone No. E-mail address

Further information on this questionnaire can be obtained from Cynthia Foreso (202-205-3348) or Gail Burns (202-205-2501).

PART II.–IMPORTS, SALES, COST, AND RELATED INFORMATION

II-1. Please identify your firm’s primary imports of the subject products (see list in question II-2):

.

II-2. Please identify products imported by your firm in addition to the one shown above.

Hardwood veneer ☐

Hardwood plywood ☐

Hardwood lumber ☐

Solid wood flooring ☐

Engineered wood flooring ☐

Other ☐

Other ☐

Other ☐

II-3. On the following tables, please report the quantity and the customs value of your firm’s annual imports of all solid and engineered wood flooring and/or hardwood plywood, by Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) subheading for the period 2002-2006 and the periods January-June 2006 and January-June 2007. Please note – the HTS subheadings changed for some products as of January 1, 2007. If any of your imports were reclassified by Customs during the period of investigation, please report them under the new (reclassified) HTS subheading.

Item	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	Jan.-June 2006	Jan.-June 2007
SOLID WOOD FLOORING:
HTS subheading 4409.20:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4409.29:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4418.30:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4418.71:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4418.90:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
Other HTS subheading _________________ (please indicate):
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)

Item	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	Jan.-June 2006	Jan.-June 2007
ENGINEERED WOOD FLOORING:
HTS subheading 4412.10:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4412.13:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4412.14:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4412.22:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4412.23:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4412.29:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4412.31:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4412.32:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4412.94:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4412.99:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
Item	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	Jan.-June 2006	Jan.-June 2007
ENGINEERED WOOD FLOORING – Continued:
HTS subheading 4418.71:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4418.72:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4418.79:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
Other HTS subheading _________________ (please indicate):
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)

Item	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	Jan.-June 2006	Jan.-June 2007
HARDWOOD PLYWOOD:
HTS subheading 4412.10:
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4412.13
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4412.14
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4412.22
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4412.23
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4412.29
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4412.31
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4412.32
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
HTS subheading 4412.94
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
Item	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	Jan.-June 2006	Jan.-June 2007
HARDWOOD PLYWOOD – Continued:
HTS subheading 4412.99
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)
Other HTS subheading _________________ (please indicate):
Quantity (1,000 square feet)
Value (1,000 dollars)

II-4 Estimate the percentage of your firm’s total engineered solid and engineered wood flooring and/or hardwood plywood imports, by thickness, in 2002-2006 and January-June 2006 and 2007.

Thickness	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	Jan.-June 2006	Jan.-June 2007
	(in percent)
Hardwood plywood:
1/4" (5.2 mm) and less
3/8" (9.0 mm)
½" (12.0 mm)
5/8" (15.0 mm)
3/4" (18.0 mm)
1" (24.2 mm) and thicker
Other
TOTAL	100%	100%	100%	100%	100%	100%	100%
Solid wood flooring:
5/16"
3/4"
Other________
TOTAL	100%	100%	100%	100%	100%	100%	100%
Engineered wood flooring:
3/8" (9.0 mm) and less
Greater than 3/8" (9.0 mm) to 3/4" (18.0 mm)
Greater than 3/4" (18.0 mm)
TOTAL	100%	100%	100%	100%	100%	100%	100%

II-5 For your 2006 imports of solid and engineered wood flooring and/or hardwood plywood, please estimate the percentage of your imports that had cores of (should total 100%) - -

HDF _____% MDF _______% Particleboard ________% Solid/lumber ________% Veneer %

During the last five years, have these percentages changed? If so please explain how.

II-6a. For your 2006 imports of both solid and engineered wood flooring, please estimate the percentage of imports by type (should total 100%):

Strip % Plank % Wide width plank % Parquet %

During the last five years, has this percentage changed? If so please explain how.

II-6b. For your 2006 imports of hardwood plywood, please estimate the percentage of imports accounted for by architectural grades: ___________.

During the last five years, has this percentage changed? If so please explain how.

II-7 Please estimate the percentage of your firm’s total solid and engineered wood flooring and/or hardwood plywood imports by type of finish for 2002-2006 and the periods January-June 2006 and 2007.

Year	Unfinished	Prefinished	Total
	(in percent)
Solid wood flooring:
2002			100%
2003			100%
2004			100%
2005			100%
2006			100%
January-June 2006			100%
January-June 2007			100%
Engineered wood flooring:
2002			100%
2003			100%
2004			100%
2005			100%
2006			100%
January-June 2006			100%
January-June 2007			100%
Hardwood plywood:
2002			100%
2003			100%
2004			100%
2005			100%
2006			100%
January-June 2006			100%
January-June 2007			100%

II-8. Since 2002, has your firm’s imports of solid and engineered wood flooring and/or hardwood plywood been altered in any way by the following factors?

Factor	No	Yes (Please explain)
For solid wood flooring:
Availability of raw materials
Trade measures (tariffs, quotas, etc.)
Certification programs (FSC, SFI)
Other factors relating to logs, veneer, or platforms
For engineered wood flooring:
Availability of raw materials
Trade measures (tariffs, quotas, etc.)
Certification programs (FSC, SFI)
Other factors relating to logs, veneer, or platforms
For hardwood plywood:
Availability of raw materials
Trade measures (tariffs, quotas, etc.)
Certification programs (FSC, SFI)
Other factors relating to logs, veneer, or platforms

II-9. Please estimate the percentage of your firm’s 2006 imports of hardwood plywood that were sold to the following end users (should total 100%):

Wholesale distributor: %

Furniture manufacturer: %

Cabinet manufacturer: %

Fixture manufacturer: %

Manufactured homes/

recreational vehicle

manufacturer: %

Retail building materials: %

Other: %

II-10. Please estimate the percentage of your firm’s 2006 imports of solid and engineered wood flooring that were sold to the following end users (should total 100%):

Wholesale distribution ______%

Home builders (general contractors) ______%

Floor covering stores ______%

Flooring installers ______%

Retail building materials

(e.g., home centers, lumber yards) ______%

Other ______%

II-11. Please list your firm’s major competitors for the subject products.

II-12. For the subject products, what product quality and service factors provide sustainable competitive advantages to your firm? Are specific market niches important?

II-13. Please give your opinion on the influence of the following factors for your firm’s sales of solid and engineered wood flooring and hardwood plywood (rate from 0 = no influence to 3 = highly influential, circle one for each factor).

Level of Influence

Factor none high

Price 0 1 2 3

Product quality 0 1 2 3

Service 0 1 2 3

Product availability 0 1 2 3

Business relationship with supplier 0 1 2 3

II-14. Please list special services, if any, that are typically required by customers in your markets and estimate the average percentage of total cost accounted for by these services.

II-15. Please explain how the markets for solid and engineered wood flooring and hardwood plywood have changed and what significant trends there have been over the last 5 years.

II-16. Please list the top five wood species for your imports of wood flooring and/or hardwood plywood.

Wood Flooring Hardwood Plywood

PART III.–CERTIFICATION PROGRAMS

III-1. Does your firm have a general policy requiring purchase of flooring and plywood produced from legal and/or sustainable timber? If yes, does your policy define what is meant by ‘legal timber’?

If yes, does this policy apply to all the flooring and plywood imported, or just the flooring and plywood to supply those markets/customers that demand it?

III-2 Does your firm require its suppliers to provide evidence that the products they supply have been legally produced? Please explain.

III-3 Does your firm require its suppliers to provide evidence of reconciliation of their log inputs with verified legal supplies? If yes, what official documentation (e.g., log transport permits) is used for this purpose, and do your suppliers make checks to avoid risks of forgeries?

III-4 Do your suppliers’ chain of custody and traceability system(s) provide for controls to detect unauthorized and possibly illegal supplies entering the supply chain? If yes, what are those controls?

III-5 Are sufficient records kept which would permit external audits of the sources of timber to be carried out?

III-6 Are any external audits carried out to check the accuracy of information provided by your suppliers? Please explain.

III-7 What percentage of your firm’s 2006 imports (in value terms) of flooring and hardwood plywood is certified by the each of the following certification programs?

Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) ________

Program for Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) ________

Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) ________

Canadian Standards Association (CSA) ________

Other ________

PART IV.--PRICING AND RELATED INFORMATION

IV-1. Who should be contacted regarding the requested pricing and related information?

Company contact:

Name and title

Phone No. E-mail address

This section requests annual price and quantity data concerning your firm’s U.S. commercial shipments of imports to unrelated U.S. customers of the following products during 2002-06 and January-June 2006 and 2007:

HARDWOOD PLYWOOD:

Product 1.–Birch face and back, grade B-4, veneer core, 4x8 feet, ¼inch thick

Product 2.–Birch face and back, grade B-2, veneer core, 4x8 feet, ½ inch thick

Product 3.–Birch face and back, grade B-2, veneer core, 4x8 feet, ¾ inch thick

Product 4.–Birch face and back, grade C-3, veneer core, 4x8 feet, ¾ inch thick

Product 5.–Birch face and back, grade D-3, veneer core, 4x8 feet, ¾ inch thick

Product 6.–Oak face and back, grade B-2, veneer core, 4x8 feet, ¾ inch thick

Product 7.–Oak face and back, grade C-3, veneer core, 4x8 feet, ¾ inch thick

Product 8.–Maple face and back, grade B-2, veneer core, 4x8 feet, ¾ inch thick

Product 9.–Maple face and back, grade C- 3 veneer core, 4x8 feet, ¾ inch thick

Product 10.–Various species, grade overlay & better grade, veneer core, 4x8 feet, 3.4 mm thick

SOLID WOOD FLOORING:

Product 11.–Red oak, prefinished, 2¼ inches wide, ¾ inch thick, random lengths

Product 12.–White oak, unfinished, 2¼ inches wide, ¾ inch thick, random lengths

Product 13.–Oak, prefinished, 3¼ inches wide, ¾ inch thick, random lengths

Product 14.–Principal exotic species (please provide product specifications on the following page), prefinished or unfinished, any width, random lengths

ENGINEERED WOOD FLOORING:

Product 15.–Oak, prefinished, face ply greater than 1 mm thick, 3 inches wide, ³/₈ inch thick, random lengths

Product 16.–Oak, prefinished, face ply less than 1 mm thick, 3 inches wide, ³/₈ inch thick, random lengths

Product 17.–Various species, prefinished, hand scraped, 5 inches wide, ½ inch thick, random lengths

Product 18.–Various species, prefinished, sawn face on a plywood core, 3 inches wide, ⁵/₈ inch thick, random lengths

Product 19.–Principal exotic species (please provide product specifications on the following page), prefinished, face ply greater than 1 mm thick, any width, any thickness, random lengths

Please note that total dollar values should be f.o.b., U.S. point of shipment and should not include U.S.-inland transportation costs. Total dollar values should reflect the FINAL NET amount paid to you (i.e., should be net of all deductions for discounts or rebates).

COPY THIS PAGE AS NECESSARY. Complete a separate page for each of the specified products¹ imported by your firm; fill in the product number from the previous page and country of origin.

Product No. (specify)

Country of origin (specify)

(Quantity in thousand square feet, value in dollars)
Period of imports	Quantity	Value2
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
January-June 2006
January-June 2007
1 If your product does not exactly meet the product specifications but is competitive with the specified product, provide a description of your product: 2 Net values (i.e., gross sales values less all discounts, allowances, rebates, prepaid freight, and the value of returned goods), f.o.b. your U.S. point of shipment.

III-2. Please describe how your firm determines the prices that it charges for sales of solid and engineered wood flooring and/or hardwood plywood (e.g., transaction by transaction negotiation, contracts for multiple imports, set price lists, etc.). If your firm issues price lists, please include a copy of a recent price list with your submission. If your price list is large, please submit sample pages.

III-3-a. How has the demand within the United States (and outside the United States if known) for solid and engineered wood flooring changed since January 1, 2002? What principal factors affect changes in demand?

□ Increased □ Unchanged □ Decreased

III-3-b. How has the demand within the United States (and outside the United States if known) for hardwood plywood changed since January 1, 2002? What principal factors affect changes in demand?

□ Increased □ Unchanged □ Decreased

III-4a. Is solid wood flooring produced in the United States and in other countries interchangeable (i.e., can they physically be used in the same applications)? Please indicate below, using “A” to indicate that the products from a specified country-pair are always interchangeable, “F” to indicate that the products are frequently interchangeable,“S” to indicate that the products are sometimes interchangeable,“N” to indicate that the products are never interchangeable, and “0” to indicate no familiarity with products from a specified country-pair.1
Country-pair	United States	Indonesia	Brazil	China	Malaysia	Russia	Canada
United States
Indonesia
Brazil
China
Malaysia
Russia
Canada
1 For any country-pair producing solid wood flooring which is sometimes or never interchangeable, please explain the factors that limit or preclude interchangeable use:

III-4b. Is engineered wood flooring produced in the United States and in other countries interchangeable (i.e., can they physically be used in the same applications)? Please indicate below, using “A” to indicate that the products from a specified country-pair are always interchangeable, “F” to indicate that the products are frequently interchangeable,“S” to indicate that the products are sometimes interchangeable,“N” to indicate that the products are never interchangeable, and “0” to indicate no familiarity with products from a specified country-pair.1
Country-pair	United States	Indonesia	Brazil	China	Malaysia	Russia	Canada
United States
Indonesia
Brazil
China
Malaysia
Russia
Canada
1 For any country-pair producing engineered wood flooring which is sometimes or never interchangeable, please explain the factors that limit or preclude interchangeable use:

III-4c. Is hardwood plywood produced in the United States and in other countries interchangeable (i.e., can they physically be used in the same applications)? Please indicate below, using “A” to indicate that the products from a specified country-pair are always interchangeable, “F” to indicate that the products are frequently interchangeable,“S” to indicate that the products are sometimes interchangeable,“N” to indicate that the products are never interchangeable, and “0” to indicate no familiarity with products from a specified country-pair.1
Country-pair	United States	Indonesia	Brazil	China	Malaysia	Russia	Canada
United States
Indonesia
Brazil
China
Malaysia
Russia
Canada
1 For any country-pair producing hardwood plywood which is sometimes or never interchangeable, please explain the factors that limit or preclude interchangeable use:

III-5a. Are differences other than price (i.e., quality, availability, transportation network, product range, technical support, etc.) between solid wood flooring produced in the United States and in other countries a significant factor in your firm’s sales of the products? Please indicate below, using “A” to indicate that such differences are always significant, “F” to indicate that such differences are frequently significant,“S” to indicate that such differences are sometimes significant,“N” to indicate that such differences are never significant, and “0” to indicate no familiarity with products from a specified country-pair.1
Country-pair	United States	Indonesia	Brazil	China	Malaysia	Russia	Canada
United States
Indonesia
Brazil
China
Malaysia
Russia
Canada
1 For any country pairing importing solid wood flooring which is sometimes or never significant, please explain:

III-5b. Are differences other than price (i.e., quality, availability, transportation network, product range, technical support, etc.) between engineered wood flooring produced in the United States and in other countries a significant factor in your firm’s sales of the products? Please indicate below, using “A” to indicate that such differences are always significant, “F” to indicate that such differences are frequently significant,“S” to indicate that such differences are sometimes significant,“N” to indicate that such differences are never significant, and “0” to indicate no familiarity with products from a specified country-pair.1
Country-pair	United States	Indonesia	Brazil	China	Malaysia	Russia	Canada
United States
Indonesia
Brazil
China
Malaysia
Russia
Canada
1 For any country pairing importing engineered wood flooring which is sometimes or never significant, please explain:

III-5c. Are differences other than price (i.e., quality, availability, transportation network, product range, technical support, etc.) between hardwood plywood produced in the United States and in other countries a significant factor in your firm’s sales of the products? Please indicate below, using “A” to indicate that such differences are always significant, “F” to indicate that such differences are frequently significant,“S” to indicate that such differences are sometimes significant,“N” to indicate that such differences are never significant, and “0” to indicate no familiarity with products from a specified country-pair.1
Country-pair	United States	Indonesia	Brazil	China	Malaysia	Russia	Canada
United States
Indonesia
Brazil
China
Malaysia
Russia
Canada
1 For any country pairing importing hardwood plywood which is sometimes or never significant, please explain: