18-4-3911 Foreign producers' questionnaire

OMB No. 3117-0016/USITC No. 18-4-3911; Expiration Date: 6/30/2020
(No response is required if currently valid OMB control number is not displayed)

FOREIGN PRODUCERS’/EXPORTERS’ QUESTIONNAIRE
STEEL RACKS FROM CHINA
This questionnaire must be received by the Commission by July 5, 2018
See last page for filing instructions.
The information called for in this questionnaire is for use by the United States International Trade Commission in
connection with its countervailing duty and antidumping investigations concerning steel racks from China (Inv.
No. 701-TA-608 and 731-TA-1420 (Preliminary)). The information requested in the questionnaire is requested
under the authority of the Tariff Act of 1930, title VII.

Name of firm
Address
Website
Has your firm produced or exported steel racks (as defined on next page) at any time since January 1, 2015?

NO

(Sign the certification below and promptly return only this page of the questionnaire to the Commission)

YES

(Complete all parts of the questionnaire, and return the entire questionnaire to the Commission)

Return questionnaire via the Commission Drop Box by clicking on the following link:
https://dropbox.usitc.gov/oinv/. (PIN: SRACK)
CERTIFICATION
I certify that the information herein supplied in response to this questionnaire is complete and correct to the best of my
knowledge and belief and understand that the information submitted is subject to audit and verification by the Commission. By
means of this certification I also grant consent for the Commission, and its employees and contract personnel, to use the
information provided in this questionnaire and throughout this proceeding in any other import-injury proceedings conducted by
the Commission on the same or similar merchandise.
I, the undersigned, acknowledge that information submitted in response to this request for information and throughout this
proceeding or other proceedings may be disclosed to and used: (i) by the Commission, its employees and Offices, and contract
personnel (a) for developing or maintaining the records of this or a related proceeding, or (b) in internal investigations, audits,
reviews, and evaluations relating to the programs, personnel, and operations of the Commission including under 5 U.S.C.
Appendix 3; or (ii) by U.S. government employees and contract personnel, solely for cybersecurity purposes. I understand that all
contract personnel will sign appropriate nondisclosure agreements.
Name of Authorized Official

Title of Authorized Official

Date

Phone:
Signature

Fax:

Email address

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Foreign Producers’ Questionnaire – Steel racks (Preliminary)

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PART I.—GENERAL INFORMATION
Background. --This proceeding was instituted in response to a petition filed on June 20, 2018, by Bulldog
Rack Company, Weirton, West Virginia; Hannibal Industries, Inc., Los Angeles, California; Husky Rack and
Wire, Denver, North Carolina; Ridg-U-Rak, Inc., North East, Pennsylvania; SpaceRAK, A Division of
Heartland Steel Products, Inc., Marysville, Michigan; Speedrack Products Group, Ltd., Sparta, Michigan;
Steel King Industries, Inc., Stevens Point, Wisconsin; Tri-Boro Shelving & Partition Corp., Farmville,
Virginia; and UNARCO Material Handling, Inc., Springfield, Tennessee. Countervailing and/or
antidumping duties may be assessed on the subject imports as a result of these proceedings if the
Commission makes an affirmative determination of injury, threat, or material retardation, and if the U.S.
Department of Commerce (“Commerce”) makes an affirmative determination of subsidization and/or
dumping. Questionnaires and other information pertinent to this proceeding are available at
https://www.usitc.gov/investigations/701731/2018/steel_racks_china/preliminary.htm.
Steel racks covered by these investigations is steel racks and parts thereof, assembled or unassembled.
Steel racks are racks made of steel of dimensions and configurations that can be adjusted as required,
with or without locking tabs or slots, and with or without bolted, clamped, or welded connections,
including any of the following: uprights, posts, columns, braces, frames, beams, arms, locking devices,
and rails.
A steel rack is a structure typically made from cold-formed or hot-rolled steel structural members and
includes, but is not limited to, components such as plates, rods, angles, shapes, sections, tubes and the
like. Welding, bolting, and clipping are the typical methods of assembly. Connections may also be made
with locking devices such as clips, end plates, and beam connectors. Steel racks may be made to ANSI
MH16.1 or ANSI MH16.3. All steel racks and parts thereof meeting the physical description set out
herein are covered by the scope of this investigation, whether or not produced according to a particular
standard.
The vertical components of steel racks may be referred to as posts, columns, or uprights, and may be
connected with horizontal or diagonal braces to form upright frames. A typical storage configuration
comprises upright frames perpendicular to the aisles, independently adjustable, positive locking beams
parallel to the aisle and spanning between the upright frames, and braces designed to support unit loads
between the beams. A cantilever rack consists of uprights running parallel to the aisle and cantilever
beams or arms connected to the uprights and running perpendicular to the aisle rather than spanning
two upright frames.
The scope includes all steel racks and parts thereof meeting the description above, regardless of: (1)
dimensions, weight, strength, gauge, or load rating; (2) vertical upright or frame type (including
structural, roll-form, or other); (3) horizontal support or beam / brace type (including but not limited to
structural, roll-form, slotted, unslotted, Z-beam, C-beam, L-beam, step beam, cantilever beam, and
cargo rack); (4) number of supports; (5) number of levels; (6) surface coating, if any (including but not
limited to paint, epoxy, powder coating, zinc, and other metallic coating); (7) shape (including but not
limited to rectangular, square, corner, and cantilever); (8) the method by which the vertical and
horizontal supports connect (including but not limited to locking tabs or slots, bolting, clamping, and
welding); and (9) the inclusion or not of moving components (including but not limited to rails, wheels,
rollers, tracks, channels, carts, and conveyors).
Steel racks may be referred to as pallet racks, storage racks, stacker racks, retail racks, pick modules, or
cantilever racks. Steel racks that incorporate moving components may also be referred to as pallet flow
racks, carton flow racks, push back racks, movable shelf racks, drive-in racks, and drive-through racks.

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Foreign Producers’ Questionnaire – Steel racks (Preliminary)

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Subject merchandise includes material matching the above description that has been finished,
assembled, or packaged in a third country, including by coating, painting, assembling, attaching to, or
packaging with another product, or any other finishing, assembly, or packaging that would not
otherwise remove the merchandise from the scope of the investigation if performed in the country of
manufacture of the steel racks and parts thereof.
Steel racks and parts thereof are covered whether or not imported attached to, or in conjunction with,
other parts and accessories such as wire decking, nuts, and bolts. If steel racks and parts thereof are
imported attached to, or in conjunction with, such non-subject merchandise, only the steel racks and
parts thereof are covered by the scope.
Specifically excluded from the scope of this investigation are any products covered by the existing
antidumping and countervailing duty orders on boltless steel shelving units prepackaged for sale from
the People’s Republic of China. See Boltless Steel Shelving Units Prepackaged for Sale From the People’s
Republic of China: Antidumping Duty Order, 80 Fed. Reg. 63,741 (October 21, 2017); Boltless Steel
Shelving Units Prepackaged for Sale From the People’s Republic of China: Amended Final Affirmative
Countervailing Duty Determination and Countervailing Duty Order, 80 Fed. Reg. 63,745 (October 21,
2017).
Merchandise covered by this investigation is currently classified in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the
United States (HTSUS) under the following subheadings: 7326.90.86881 and 9403.20.0080.2 Subject
merchandise may also enter under subheadings 7308.90.3000, 7308.90.6000, 7308.90.9590, and
9403.20.0090. The HTSUS subheadings set forth above are provided for convenience and U.S. Customs
purposes only. The written description of the scope is dispositive.
Reporting of information.-- If information is not readily available from your records, provide carefully
prepared estimates. If your firm is completing more than one questionnaire (i.e., a producer, importer,
purchaser and/or foreign producer questionnaire), you need not respond to duplicated questions.
Confidentiality.--The commercial and financial data furnished in response to this questionnaire that
reveal the individual operations of your firm will be treated as confidential by the Commission to the
extent that such data are not otherwise available to the public and will not be disclosed except as may
be required by law (see 19 U.S.C. §1677f). Such confidential information will not be published in a
manner that will reveal the individual operations of your firm; however, general characterizations of
numerical business proprietary information (such as discussion of trends) will be treated as confidential
business information only at the request of the submitter for good cause shown.
Verification.--The information submitted in this questionnaire is subject to audit and verification by the
Commission. To facilitate possible verification of data, please keep all files, worksheets, and supporting
documents used in the preparation of the questionnaire response. Please also retain a copy of the final
document that you submit.
Release of information.--The information provided by your firm in response to this questionnaire, as
well as any other business proprietary information submitted by your firm to the Commission in
Prior to January 1, 2017, such merchandise was classified under HTS statistical reporting number 7326.90.8588.
From July 1, 2015 through December 31, 2017, such merchandise was classified under HTS statistical reporting
number 9403.20.0080. Prior to July 1, 2015 such merchandise was classified under HTS statistical reporting
number 9403.20.0020.
1
2

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Foreign Producers’ Questionnaire – Steel racks (Preliminary)

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connection with this proceeding, may become subject to, and released under, the administrative
protective order provisions of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. § 1677f) and section 207.7 of the
Commission’s Rules of Practice and Procedure (19 CFR § 207.7). This means that certain lawyers and
other authorized individuals may temporarily be given access to the information for use in connection
with this proceeding or other import-injury proceedings conducted by the Commission on the same or
similar merchandise; those individuals would be subject to severe penalties if the information were
divulged to unauthorized individuals.
Valid number error messages.--If you are completing this form in a country that uses periods (“.”) to
delineate multiples of 1000 (e.g., one million would appear as $1.000.000 rather than $1,000,000), you
may be unable to enter in numbers greater than 999 in numeric form fields. The solution to this data
entry issue is to temporarily change your operating system’s number formatting to be consistent with
the U.S. number formatting system while you complete this form. Detailed instructions on how to
resolve this issue is provided at the end of this questionnaire and is available upon request from Amelia
Shister (202-205-2047, [email protected]).
I-1.

OMB statistics.--Please report below the actual number of hours required and the cost to your
firm of completing this questionnaire
Hours

Dollars

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
20 hours per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, gathering data, and
completing and reviewing the questionnaire.
We welcome comments regarding the accuracy of this burden estimate, suggestions for
reducing the burden, and any suggestions for improving this questionnaire. Please attach such
comments to your response or send to the Office of Investigations, USITC, 500 E St. SW,
Washington, DC 20436.
I-2.

Establishments covered.--Provide the name and address of establishment(s) covered by this
questionnaire. If your firm is publicly traded, please specify the stock exchange and trading
symbol.
“Establishment”-- Each facility of a firm in China involved in the production or export of steel
racks, including auxiliary facilities operated in conjunction with (whether or not physically
separate from) such facilities. Firms operating more than one establishment in China should
combine the data for all establishments into a single report.

Business Proprietary
Foreign Producers’ Questionnaire – Steel racks (Preliminary)
I-3.

Related producers.--Does your firm or any related firm produce, have the capability to produce,
or have any plans to produce steel racks in the United States or other countries?

No

I-4.

Yes

Yes

2
3
4
5

If yes, please name the firm(s) below and ensure that they complete the
Commission’s importer questionnaire:

U.S. importers.--Please provide the names, contacts, telephone numbers, and e-mail addresses
of the FIVE largest U.S. importers of your firm’s steel racks in 2017.

Importer’s name
1

If yes, please name the firm(s) and country(ies) below and, if U.S.
producer(s), ensure that they complete the Commission’s producer
questionnaire.:

Related U.S. importers.--Does your firm or any related firm import or have any plans to import
steel racks into the United States?

No

I-5.

Page 5

Contact person

Email

Telephone

Share of your
firm’s 2017 U.S.
exports (%)

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Foreign Producers’ Questionnaire – Steel racks (Preliminary)

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PART II.--TRADE AND RELATED INFORMATION
Further information on this part of the questionnaire can be obtained from Amelia Shister (202-2052047, [email protected]). Supply all data requested on a calendar-year basis.
II-1.

Contact information.--Please identify the responsible individual and the manner by which
Commission staff may contact that individual regarding the confidential information submitted
in part II.
Name
Title
Email
Telephone
Fax

II-2a.

Changes in operations.--Please indicate whether your firm has experienced any of the following
changes in relation to the production of steel racks since January 1, 2015.
(check as many as appropriate)
plant openings
plant closings
relocations
expansions
acquisitions
consolidations
prolonged shutdowns or
production curtailments
revised labor agreements
other (e.g., technology)

(If checked, please describe; leave blank if not applicable)

Business Proprietary
Foreign Producers’ Questionnaire – Steel racks (Preliminary)
II-2b.

Anticipated changes in operations.--Does your firm anticipate any changes in the character of
its operations or organization (as noted above) relating to the production of steel racks in the
future?

No

II-3a.

Page 7

Yes

If yes, supply details as to the time, nature, and significance of such
changes and provide underlying assumptions.

Production using same machinery.-- Please report your firm’s production of products using the
same equipment, machinery, or employees as used to produce steel racks, and the combined
production capacity on this shared equipment, machinery, or employees in the periods
indicated.
“Overall production capacity” or “capacity” –The level of production that your
establishment(s) could reasonably have expected to attain during the specified periods for all
products manufactured in that establishment using the same manufacturing equipment.
Assume normal operating conditions (i.e., using equipment and machinery in place and ready to
operate; normal operating levels (hours per week/weeks per year) and time for downtime,
maintenance, repair, and cleanup).
Note.--If your firm does not produce any out-of-scope merchandise on the same machinery and
equipment as scope merchandise then the "overall production capacity" numbers reported in
this question should be exactly equal to the "average production capacity" numbers reported in
question II-8. If, however, your firm does produce out-of-scope merchandise using the same
machinery and equipment as scope mercandhise, then the "average production capacity"
reported in question II-8 should exclude the portion of "overall production capacity" that was
used to produce this out-of-scope merchandise.
“Production” --All production in your establishment(s) in China, including production consumed
internally within your firm.
Quantity (in pounds)
Calendar years
Item

2015

2016

January-March
2017

2017

2018

Overall production capacity
Production of:
Steel racks 1

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

Out-of-scope production

2

Total
1
2

Data entered for production of steel racks will populate here once reported in question II-8.
Please identify these products:
.

Business Proprietary
Foreign Producers’ Questionnaire – Steel racks (Preliminary)
II-3b.

Page 8

Operating parameters.--The production capacity reported in II-3a is based on the following
operating paramaters:
Hours per week

Weeks per year

II-3c.

Capacity calculation.--Please describe the methodology used to calculate overall production
capacity reported in II-3a, and explain any changes in reported capacity.

II-3d.

Production constraints.--Please describe the constraint(s) that set the limit(s) on your firm’s
production capacity.

II-3e.

Product shifting.—
(i).

Is your firm able to switch production (capacity) between steel racks and other products
using the same equipment and/or labor?

No

(ii).

Yes

If yes—(i.e., have produced other products or are able to produce other
products) Please identify other actual or potential products:

Please describe the factors that affect your firm’s ability to shift production capacity
between products (e.g., time, cost, relative price change, etc.), and the degree to which
these factors enhance or constrain such shifts.

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Foreign Producers’ Questionnaire – Steel racks (Preliminary)

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II-4.

Share of sales.--What percentage of your firm’s total sales in its most recent fiscal year was
represented by sales of steel racks?
percent.

II-5.

Firm's estimated share of production in China.--Please estimate the percentage of total production
of steel racks in the country specified on the certification page accounted for by your firm’s
production in 2017.
percent.

II-6.

Firm's estimated share of country's exports.--Please estimate the percentage of total exports to
the United States of steel racks from the country specified on the certification page accounted
for by your firm’s exports in 2017.
percent.

II-7.

Third country trade actions.--Is the steel racks exported by your firm subject to
antidumping/countervailing duty/safeguard findings, remedies, or proceedings?

No

Yes

If yes--List the products(s), countries affected, and the date of such
findings/remedies/proceedings.

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Foreign Producers’ Questionnaire – Steel racks (Preliminary)
II-8.

Page 10

Trade data.--Report your firm’s production capacity, production, shipments, and inventories
related to the production of steel racks in your establishment(s) in China during the specified
periods. Do not include resales of steel racks that your firm did not produce in this question;
those data to the degree they are exported to the United States should only be reported in
question II-9.
Do not submit data by manufacturing facility if they are in the same country. If your firm has
multiple manufacturing establishments within one country, you are required to combine data
for those establishments within one foreign producer questionnaire response.
“Average production capacity” or “capacity” –The level of production that your
establishment(s) could reasonably have expected to attain during the specified periods for all
products manufactured in that establishment using the same manufacturing equipment.
Assume normal operating conditions (i.e., using equipment and machinery in place and ready to
operate; normal operating levels (hours per week/weeks per year) and time for downtime,
maintenance, repair, and cleanup; and a typical or representative product mix).
“Production” --All production in your establishment(s) in China, including production consumed
internally within your firm.
“Shipments”--Shipments of products produced in your establishment(s) in China. Quantities
reported should be net of returns.
“Home market commercial shipments”--Shipments, other than internal consumption and
transfers to related firms, within China.
“Home market internal consumption/transfers to related firms”--Shipments made to
related firms in China, including product consumed internally by your firm.
“Export shipments”--Shipments to destinations outstide of the country indicacted on page 1
(China), including shipments to related firms.
“Inventories”--Finished goods inventory, not raw materials or work-in-progress.
Note: As requested in Part I of this questionnaire, please keep all supporting documents/records
used in the preparation of the trade data, as Commission staff may contact your firm regarding
questions on the trade data. The Commission may also request that your company submit copies
of the supporting documents/records (such as production and sales schedules, inventory records,
etc.) used to compile these data.

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Foreign Producers’ Questionnaire – Steel racks (Preliminary)
II-8.

Page 11

Trade data.--Continued.
Quantity (in pounds)
Actual experience
Calendar year

Item

2015

2016

Projections1
January-March

2017

2017

Calendar year

2018

2018

2019

Average production
capacity2 (A)
Beginning-of-period
inventories (B)
Production (C)
Home market shipments:
Internal consumption/
transfers (D)
Commercial shipments
(E)
Exports to the United
States (F)
Exports to all other
markets3 (G)
Total exports (H)
(should equal F+G)

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

Total shipments (I)
(should equal D+E+F+G)

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

End-of-period inventories
(J)
Please explain the basis for your firm’s projections.
.
The production capacity reported is based on operating
hours per week,
weeks per year. Please describe
the methodology used to calculate production capacity, and explain any changes in reported capacity.
.
3
Identify principal other export markets.
.
1
2

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Foreign Producers’ Questionnaire – Steel racks (Preliminary)
II-8.

Page 12

Trade data.--Continued.

RECONCILIATION OF SHIPMENTS, PRODUCTION, AND INVENTORY.--Generally, the data reported for the
end-of-period inventories (i.e., line J) should be equal to the beginning-of-period inventories (i.e., line B),
plus production (i.e., line C), less total shipments (i.e., lines D, E, F, and G). Please ensure that any
differences are not due to data entry errors in completing this form, but rather actually reflect your firm’s
records; and also provide any likely explanations for any differences (e.g., theft, loss, damage, record
systems issues, etc.) if they exist.
Actual experience
Calendar year
Item

2015

2016

Projections
January-March

2017

2017

2018

Calendar year
2018

2019

B + C – D – E – F –G – J = should equal
zero ("0") or provide an explanation.1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
Explanation if the calculated fields above are returning values other than zero (i.e., “0”) but are nonetheless
accurate:
II-9.

0

Exports to the United States not produced by your firm.--Report your firm’s exports to the
United States of steel racks that was produced in China but not by your firm during the specified
periods. Note these data should not be included in question II-8.
Quantity (in pounds)
Actual experience
Calendar year
Item

2015

2016

Projections
January-March

2017

2017

2018

Calendar year
2018

2019

Exports of steel racks to the
United States not produced by
your firm1
1

List the producer(s).

II-10.

Other explanations.--If your firm would like to further explain a response to a question in Part II
that did not provide a narrative box, please note the question number and the explanation in
the space provided below. Please also use this space to highlight any issues your firm had in
providing the data in this section, including but not limited to technical issues with the MS Word
questionnaire.

.

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Foreign Producers’ Questionnaire – Steel racks (Preliminary)

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Correcting Valid number error messages.--If you are completing a Commission

questionnaire in a country that uses periods (“.”) to delineate multiples of 1000 (e.g., one million would
appear as $1.000.000 instead of as $1,000,000), you may be unable to enter in numbers greater than
999 in numeric form fields. This issues stem from your computer number formatting setting (e.g., not
the MS Word document itself, but the computer from which you are opening up the document). In the
United States commas (,) delineate multiples of 1000 and periods (.) delineate fractions less than one.
Many EU countries use the reverse where multiples of 1000 are delineated with periods (.) and
fractions less than one are delineated with commas (,). The US International Trade Commission’s
questionnaires are set-up in the United States with the U.S. number formatting. When this formatting
interacts with a computer set to EU number formatting, we believe this may cause this issue.
The solution to this data entry issue is to temporarily change your operating system’s number
formatting to be consistent with the U.S. number formatting system while you complete the
questionnaire.
To temporarily change your computer’s number settings to U.S. settings, please do the following (for
Microsoft Windows Operating system):
•
•
•
•
•

START
Control Panel
Region and Language (under Clock, Language, and Region category)
Format tab
Change the Format from your existing one (e.g. “Italian (Italy)”) to “English (United States)” (see
screen shots below)

When you do this the number “twelve million dollars and thirty five cents” would change from
$12.000.000,35 (Italy format) to $12,000,000.35 (U.S. format), and then there will be no conflict with
the USITC foreign producer questionnaire form. When you finish reporting the data then you can close
the questionnaire and switch back to Italy settings.

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Foreign Producers’ Questionnaire – Steel racks (Preliminary)

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HOW TO FILE YOUR QUESTIONNAIRE RESPONSE
This questionnaire is available as a “fillable” form in MS Word format on the
Commission’s website at:
https://www.usitc.gov/investigations/701731/2018/steel_racks_china/preliminary.htm
Please do not attempt to modify the format or permissions of the questionnaire
document. Please submit the completed questionnaire using one of the methods noted
below. If your firm is unable to complete the MS Word questionnaire or cannot use one
of the electronic methods of submission, please contact the Commission for further
instructions.
• Upload via Secure Drop Box.—Upload the MS Word questionnaire along with a scanned copy of the
signed certification page (page 1) through the Commission’s secure upload facility:
Web address: https://dropbox.usitc.gov/oinv/

Pin: SRACK

• E-mail.—E-mail your questionnaire to [email protected]; include a scanned copy of the signed
certification page (page 1). Submitters are strongly encouraged to encrypt nonpublic documents that are
electronically transmitted to the Commission to protect your sensitive information from unauthorized
disclosure. The USITC secure drop-box system and the Electronic Document Information System (EDIS)
use Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) 140-2 cryptographic algorithms to encrypt data in
transit. Submitting your nonpublic documents by a means that does not use these encryption algorithms
(such as by email) may subject your firm’s nonpublic information to unauthorized disclosure during
transmission. If you choose a non-encrypted method of electronic transmission, the Commission warns
you that the risk of such possible unauthorized disclosure is assumed by you and not by the Commission.
If your firm did not produce or export this product, please fill out page 1, print, sign, and submit a
scanned copy to the Commission.
Parties to this proceeding.—If your firm is a party to this proceeding, you are required to serve a copy of
the completed questionnaire on parties to the proceeding that are subject to administrative protective
order (see 19 CFR § 207.7). A list of such parties may be obtained from the Commission’s Secretary (202205-1803). A certificate of service must accompany the completed questionnaire you submit (see 19 CFR
§ 207.7). Service of the questionnaire must be made in paper form.