20-3-4315 U.S. purchasers' questionnaire

OMB No. 3117-0016/USITC No. 20-3-4315; Expiration Date: 6/30/2023
(No response is required if currently valid OMB control number is not displayed)

U.S. PURCHASERS’ QUESTIONNAIRE
LARGE VERTICAL SHAFT ENGINES FROM CHINA
This questionnaire must be received by the Commission by October 21, 2020
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 duty investigations concerning large vertical shaft engines from
China (Inv. Nos. 701-TA-637 and 731-TA-1471 (Final)). The information requested in the questionnaire is requested
under the authority of the Tariff Act of 1930, title VII. 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)). Further information on this questionnaire can be obtained from Cindy Cohen (202-205-3230,
[email protected]).

Name of firm
Address
City

State

Zip Code

Website
Has your firm purchased, or imported for its own use, large vertical shaft engines (as defined on next page) from
any source (domestic or foreign) at any time since January 1, 2017?

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 U.S. International Trade Commission Drop Box by clicking on the
following link: https://dropbox.usitc.gov/oinv/. (PIN: ENGCN)
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
submitting 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

Signature

Phone

Email address

Business Proprietary
U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)

Page 2

PART I.—GENERAL INFORMATION
Background.–This proceeding was instituted in response to a petition filed on January 15, 2020, by the
Coalition of American Vertical Engine Producers (Kohler Co., Kohler, Wisconsin, and Briggs & Stratton
Corporation, Wauwatosa, Wisconsin). Countervailing and/or antidumping duties may be assessed on the
subject imports as a result of these proceedings if the Commission makes affirmative determinations 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://usitc.gov/investigations/701731/2020/vertical_shaft_engines_china/final.htm.
Large vertical shaft engines covered by these investigations are spark-ignited, non-road, large vertical
shaft engines, whether finished or unfinished, whether assembled or unassembled, designed primarily
for use in riding lawn mowers and zero-turn radius lawn mowers. Engines meeting this physical
description may also be designed for use in other non-hand-held outdoor power equipment. The subject
engines are spark ignition, single or multiple cylinder, air cooled, internal combustion engines with
vertical power take off shafts with a minimum displacement of 225 cubic centimeters ("cc") and a
maximum displacement of 999cc. Typically, engines with displacements of this size generate gross
power of between 6. 7 kilowatts ("kw'') to 42 kw.
Engines covered by this scope normally must comply with and be certified under Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) air pollution controls title 40, chapter I, subchapter U, part 1054 of the Code of
Federal Regulations standards for small non-road spark-ignition engines and equipment. Engines that
otherwise meet the physical description of the scope but are not certified under 40 CFR part 1054 and
are not certified under other parts of subchapter U of the EPA air pollution controls are not excluded
from the scope of this proceeding. Engines that may be certified under both 40 CFR part 1054 as well as
other parts of subchapter U remain subject to the scope of this proceeding.
For purposes of these investigations, an unfinished engine covers at a minimum a sub-assembly
comprised of, but not limited to, the following components: crankcase, crankshaft, camshaft, pistons(s),
connecting rod(s), and oil pan. Importation of these components together, whether assembled or
unassembled, and whether or not accompanied by additional components such as a manifold, cylinder
head(s), valve train, or valve cover(s), constitutes an unfinished engine for purposes of these
investigations. The inclusion of other products such as spark plugs fitted into the cylinder head or
electrical devices (e.g., ignition modules, ignition coils) for synchronizing with the motor to supply
tension current does not remove the product from the scope. The inclusion of any other components
not identified as comprising the unfinished engine subassembly in a third-country does not remove the
engine from the scope.
The engines subject to these investigations are typically classified in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of
the United States (HTSUS) in subheading 8407.90.10 and imported under statistical reporting numbers:
8407.90.1020, 8407.90.1060, and 8407.90.1080. Engines subject to these investigations may also be
imported under HTSUS 8407.90.9060 and 8407.90.9080. The engine subassemblies that are subject to
these investigations are imported under HTSUS 8409.91.5085 and 8409.91.9990. The HTSUS statistical
reporting numbers are provided for convenience and customs purposes only, and the written
description of the merchandise under investigation is dispositive.

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)

Page 3

Purchaser.--Any firm engaged, either directly or through a parent company or subsidiary, in purchasing
large vertical shaft engines from another firm that produces, imports, or otherwise distributes large
vertical shaft engines.
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,
and/or purchaser 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
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.
I-1a.

Establishments covered.--Provide the name and address of your U.S. establishment(s) covered
by this questionnaire, if different from that listed on the cover page. Firms operating more than
one establishment should combine the data for all establishments into a single response.
“Establishment”--Each facility of a firm involved in the purchase of large vertical shaft engines,
including auxiliary facilities operated in conjunction with (whether or not physically separate
from) such facilities.

I-1b.

Stock symbol information.-- If your firm or parent firm is publicly traded, please specify the
stock exchange and trading symbol:
.

Business Proprietary
U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)
I-1c.

Page 4

External counsel.-- If your firm or parent firm is represented by external counsel in relation to
this proceeding, please specify the name of the law firm and the lead attorney(s).
Law firm:
Lead attorney(s):

I-2.

Ownership.--Is your firm owned, in whole or in part, by any other firm?
No
Firm name

I-3.

Country

Extent of ownership
(percent)

Related importers/exporters.--Does your firm have any related firms, either domestic or
foreign, which import large vertical shaft engines into the United States or which export large
vertical shaft engines to the United States?
No
Firm name

I-4.

Yes--List the following information, relating to the ultimate parent/owner.

Yes--List the following information.
Country

Affiliation

Related producers.--Does your firm have any related firms, either domestic or foreign, which
produce large vertical shaft engines?
No
Firm name

Yes--List the following information.
Country

Affiliation

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)

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PART II.--PURCHASES
Contact information.--Please identify the responsible individual and the manner by which Commission
staff may contact that individual regarding the confidential information submitted in this questionnaire.
Name
Title
Email
Telephone
II-1.

Purchases and imports.--Report separately your firm’s domestic purchases and imports of large
vertical shaft engines.
“Purchase” – Purchase from a U.S. entity such as a U.S. producer, a U.S. importer, or other U.S.
firm.
“Import” – Purchase directly from a foreign supplier and your firm is the importer of record.
2017

2018

Item

January-June
2020

2019

Quantity (in units)

Purchases of large vertical shaft
engines produced in—
United States
China
All other countries1
Sources unknown2
Total purchases

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

Imports of large vertical shaft
engines from—
China
All other countries1
Total imports3
1

Please identify these countries:
Please indicate the firm(s) from which you purchased this merchandise:
3
If your firm imported large vertical shaft engines at any time since January 1, 2017, please also complete
and return a U.S. importers' questionnaire in this proceeding.
2

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)
II-2.

Page 6

Changes in purchasing patterns.--Please indicate how the shares of your firm’s purchases of
large vertical shaft engines from different sources have changed since January 1, 2017.

Source of
purchases

Did not
purchase Decreased Increased Constant Fluctuated

Explanation for trend

United States
China
All other countries
Sources unknown
II-3.

Country knowledge.--Please indicate the countries of origin with which your firm has
experience or information in the large vertical shaft engines market.
United
States

II-4.

China

Other
countries

Other countries (specify)

Supplier identification.--Please list your firm’s FIVE largest suppliers for large vertical shaft
engines since January 1, 2017. Also, provide the share of the quantity of your firm’s total
purchases of large vertical shaft engines that each of these suppliers accounted for in 2019.

No.

Supplier’s name

City and state

Share of quantity of
2019 purchases

1

%

2

%

3

%

4

%

5

%

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)

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PART III.--MARKET CHARACTERISTICS AND PURCHASING PRACTICES
III-1.

Firm type.--Which of the following best describes your firm as a purchaser of large vertical shaft
engines (check all that apply)?
OEM

III-2.

Distributor
or dealer

Other

Describe other

Competition for sales.--Does your firm compete for sales to customers with the manufacturers
or importers from which your firm purchases large vertical shaft engines?
No

Yes

If yes, please describe.

If your firm is a distributor of large vertical shaft engines, please answer question III-3.
III-3.

Types of customers.--What are the major types of consumers to which your firm sells large
vertical shaft engines?

If your firm is an end user of large vertical shaft engines, please answer questions III-4 to III-7.
III-4.

End uses.--List the top 3 products your firm makes using large vertical shaft engines and
estimate the percent of your total production cost that is accounted for by large vertical shaft
engines and by other inputs (such as labor, energy, and other raw materials).
Share of total cost in each of the product(s) your
firm produces accounted for by
Product(s) your firm
produces

Large vertical shaft
engines

Total
(should
sum to
100.0%
across)

Other inputs
% +

%

=

0.0 %

% +

%

=

0.0 %

% +

%

=

0.0 %

Business Proprietary
U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)
III-5.

Demand for end-use products.-(a)

Has the demand for your firm’s final products incorporating large vertical shaft engines
changed since January 1, 2017?
Increased

(b)

No change

Decreased

Fluctuated

Has this had any effect on your firm’s demand for large vertical shaft engines?
No

III-6.

Page 8

Yes

Explain

Engine selection.—
(a)

Please describe how your firm selects the large vertical shaft engines to pair with the
mowers your firm produces.

(b)

Please explain how your firm analyzes the total value proposition of purchasing a
vertical shaft engine (or set of engines) from different sources.

(c)

Does your firm work with engine producers to develop large vertical shaft engines for
particular mower models? If yes, explain how this process works, whether competition
for mowers with engine producers affects these relationships, and how important it is
commercially to match the engine brand to the mower brand.
No

(d)

Yes

Explain

Do your firm’s expenses for procuring engines vary by engine producer (or country)?
No

Yes

Explain

Business Proprietary
U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)
III-7.

III-8.

Page 9

Price and contract negotiations.—
(a)

Please describe the price negotiation process with your firm’s suppliers of large vertical
shaft engines, the timeline, and when during the process prices are finalized.

(b)

Describe your firm’s contracts with each of your firm’s suppliers of large vertical shaft
engines, including the length of each contract, and whether prices or quantities are
fixed.

Substitutes.--Can other products be substituted for large vertical shaft engines?
No

Substitute

Yes--Please fill out the table.

End use in which this
substitute is used

Have changes in the price of this substitute
affected the price for large vertical shaft engines?
No Yes

Explanation

1.
2.
3.
III-9.

Demand trends.--Indicate how demand within the United States and outside of the United
States (if known) for large vertical shaft engines has changed since January 1, 2017. Explain any
trends and describe the principal factors that have affected these changes in demand (e.g., new
home construction, weather, overall economy, emissions regulations/environmental policies,
commercial lawn services, and COVID-19).

Market
Within the United States
Outside the United States

Overall
increase

No
change

Fluctuate
Overall
with no
decrease clear trend

Explanation and factors

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)

Page 10

III-10. Country preferences.--Do you or your customers ever specifically order large vertical shaft
engines from one country in particular over other possible sources of supply?
No

Yes

If yes, identify the countries and explain.

III-11. Importance of purchasing domestic product.--Please fill out the table below, estimating the
percentage of your firm’s total 2019 purchases of large vertical shaft engines that required large
vertical shaft engines produced in the United States.
Estimated percentage of
your firm’s total 2019
purchases of large vertical
shaft engines
Purchases that did not require domestic product

%

Purchases that were required by law or regulation to be domestic product
(e.g., government purchases under “Buy American” provisions)

%

Purchases that were not required by law or regulation, but were required by
your customers to be domestic product

%

Purchases that were required to be domestic product for other reasons
(explain:
.)

%

Total (should sum to 100.0%)

0.0 %

III-12. Conditions of competition.-(a)

Is the large vertical shaft engines market subject to business cycles and/or other
conditions of competition distinctive to large vertical shaft engines?

Check all that apply.

Please describe.

No

Skip to question III-13.

Yes-Business cycles (e.g.
seasonal business)
Yes-Other distinctive
conditions of competition
(b)

Have there been any changes in the business cycles or conditions of competition for
large vertical shaft engines since January 1, 2017?
No

Yes

If yes, describe.

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)

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III-13. Decisions based on producer and country-of-origin.--How often does your firm, and if known,
do your customers, make purchasing decisions involving large vertical shaft engines based on its
producer or country of origin?
Item

Always

Usually

Sometimes

Never

If at least sometimes, explain.

Decision based on producer
Your firm
Your
customers
Decision based on country of origin
Your firm
Your
customers
III-14. Availability of supply.--Has the availability of large vertical shaft engines in the U.S. market
changed since January 1, 2017?
Availability in the U.S.
Please explain, noting the countries and reasons for the
market
No Yes changes.
U.S.-produced product
Subject imports
Nonsubject imports
III-15. Supply constraints.--Has any firm refused, declined, or been unable to supply your firm with
large vertical shaft engines since January 1, 2017 (examples include placing customers on
allocation or “controlled order entry,” declining to accept new customers or renew existing
customers, delivering less than the quantity promised, being unable to meet timely shipment
commitments, etc.)?
No

Yes

If yes, please describe, including the time period(s) and supplier(s).

III-16. Availability of specific product types.--Are certain types/sizes of large vertical shaft engines only
available from certain country sources?
No

Yes

If yes, please identify the countries and the type/size.

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)

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III-17. Purchasing frequency.-(a)

How frequently does your firm make purchases of large vertical shaft engines (check
one)?
Daily

(b)

Weekly

Monthly

Quarterly

Annually

Other

If other, specify

Has this purchasing frequency changed since January 1, 2017?
No

Yes

If yes, please describe.

III-18. Raw material prices.—
(a)

Is your firm familiar with the prices for raw materials used in the production of large
vertical shaft engines?
No

(b)

Yes – please answer (b)

Has information on raw material prices affected your firm’s negotiations or contracts to
purchase large vertical shaft engines since 2017?
No

Yes Explain

III-19. Number of suppliers contacted.--How many suppliers does your firm generally contact before
making a purchase? Between
and
firms
III-20. Supplier negotiations.--Do your firm’s purchases of large vertical shaft engines usually involve
negotiations between supplier and purchaser?

No

Yes

If yes, explain the factors your firm generally negotiates and note whether
your firm quotes competing prices during negotiations.

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)

Page 13

III-21. Change in suppliers.--Has your firm changed suppliers since January 1, 2017?

No

Yes

If yes, please list the supplier(s), whether the firm was added or dropped,
and the reasons for the change.

III-22. New suppliers.--Are you aware of any new suppliers, either foreign or domestic, that have
entered the market since January 1, 2017?
No

Yes

If yes, please identify the firms.

III-23. Supplier qualification.--Do you require your suppliers to be or to become certified or qualified
to sell large vertical shaft engines to your firm?
If yes, provide the following information.
 The number of days to qualify a new supplier.
 A general description of the certification or qualification process. Also, a brief
description of the factors that you consider when qualifying a new supplier (e.g., quality
of product, reliability of supplier, etc.).

No

Yes

Number
of days Process and factors

III-24. Failure to certify.--Since January 1, 2017, have any domestic or foreign producers failed in their
attempts to certify or qualify their large vertical shaft engines with your firm or have any
producers lost their approved status?

No

Yes

If yes, please identify these firms, the countries where they are located,
and the reasons why they failed the certification/qualification.

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)

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III-25. Major purchasing factors.--Please list, in order of their importance, the main factors your firm
considers in deciding from whom to purchase large vertical shaft engines (examples include
availability, extension of credit, contracts, price, quality, range of supplier’s product line,
traditional supplier, etc.).
1.
2.
3.
Please list any other factors that are very important in your purchase decisions:
III-26. Purchasing factors.--Please rate the importance of the following factors in your firm’s
purchasing decisions for large vertical shaft engines.

Factor
Availability
Brand
Delivery terms
Delivery time
Discounts offered
Engine features
Engine safety
Meet purchaser specifications
Minimum quantity requirements
Packaging
Payment terms
Price
Product consistency
Product range
Quality meets industry standards
Quality exceeds industry standards
Reliability of supply
Technical support/service
U.S. transportation costs
Warranty

Very
important

Somewhat
important

Not
important

.

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)

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III-27. Quality characteristics.--What characteristics does your firm consider when determining the
quality of large vertical shaft engines?

III-28. Minimum quality.--How often does large vertical shaft engines from the following countries
meet minimum quality specifications for your uses or your customers’ uses?

Source

Always

Usually

Sometimes

Rarely or
never

Don’t
know

United States
China
Other:
III-29. Frequency of decisions based on price.--How often does your firm purchase the large vertical
shaft engines that is offered at the lowest price?
Always

Usually

Sometimes

Never

III-30. Price leaders.--A price leader is defined as (1) one or more firms that initiate a price change,
either upward or downward, that is followed by other firms, or (2) one or more firms that have a
significant impact on prices. A price leader is not necessarily the lowest-priced supplier.
Please list the names of any firms you considered price leaders in the large vertical shaft engines
market since January 1, 2017.
Firm(s)

Describe how the firm(s) exhibited price leadership

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)

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III-31. Purchasing subject imports rather than domestic products.—
(a)

Since January 2017, did your firm import and/or purchase imports of large vertical shaft
engines from China instead of purchasing U.S.-produced large vertical shaft engines?
Source

Yes
(also respond to parts (b) and (c))

No
(If “No”, skip to next question)

China
(b)

If you responded “Yes” to part (a), was the imported product priced lower than the
domestic product?
Source

Yes

No

China
(c)

If you responded “Yes” to part (a), was price a primary reason for importing and/or
purchasing subject imports rather than domestic product?

Source

China

Yes

If Yes, estimate the quantity
of imports purchased and/or
imported instead of domestic
product since January 2017
(in units)

No

If No, please indicate the
reason your firm imported
and/or purchased imports
instead of domestic product

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)

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III-32. U.S. producers and import competition.—
(a)

Since January 1, 2017, in connection with a sale or offer to sell large vertical shaft
engines to your firm, did U.S. producers reduce their prices of domestically produced
large vertical shaft engines in order to compete with lower-priced imports of large
vertical shaft engines from China?
Source

Yes (also respond to
question part (b))

No (If “No”, skip to next
question)

Don’t know

China
(b)

If your firm responded “yes”, please provide an estimate of the reduction in U.S.
producers’ prices, and any additional explanations, such as timing (e.g., months/years),
frequency of price reductions, or other market/competitive factors.

Source
China

Estimated
reduction in U.S.
prices
(percent)
%

Additional explanation, including such information as
timing (e.g., months/years), frequency of price
reductions, or other market/competitive factors

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)

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III-33. Impact of section 301 tariffs.-- Did the imposition of tariffs on Chinese-origin products under
section 301 have an impact on the large vertical shaft engines market in the United States?
Yes— Please indicate the
impact in the table below.

No

Overall
No
Overall
increase change decrease

Factor

Don’t know

Explain, noting how the imposition
Fluctuate of tariffs under section 301 affected
with no
each factor of the large vertical
clear
shaft engines market in the United
trend
States.

Supply of U.S.produced large
vertical shaft engines
Supply of large vertical
shaft engines
imported from China
Supply of large vertical
shaft engines
imported from other
countries
Prices for large vertical
shaft engines
Overall U.S. demand
for large vertical shaft
engines
Raw material costs for
large vertical shaft
engines
III-34. Warranties. --Do your suppliers provide product warranties for large vertical shaft engines? If
yes, please briefly summarize the warranties provided by each supplier and indicate the
percentage of the price of an engine that is accounted for by warranty costs.

No

If yes, describe the warranties provided by each of your suppliers and indicate
Yes the percentage of the price of an engine that is accounted for by warranty costs.

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U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)

Page 19

PART IV.—PRODUCT COMPARISONS
IV-1.

Interchangeability.--Is large vertical shaft engines produced in the United States and in other
countries interchangeable (i.e., can they physically be used in the same applications)?
Please indicate A, F, S, N, or 0 in the table below:
A = the products from a specified country-pair are always interchangeable
F = the products are frequently interchangeable
S = the products are sometimes interchangeable
N = the products are never interchangeable
0 = no familiarity with products from a specified country-pair
Country-pair

China

Other countries

United States
China
For any country-pair producing large vertical shaft engines that is sometimes or never
interchangeable, identify the country-pair and explain the factors that limit or preclude
interchangeable use:

IV-2.

Factors other than price.--Are differences other than price (e.g., quality, availability,
transportation network, product range, technical support, etc.) between large vertical shaft
engines produced in the United States and in other countries a significant factor in your firm’s
purchases of the products?
Please indicate A, F, S, N, or 0 in the table below:
A = such differences are always significant
F = such differences are frequently significant
S = such differences are sometimes significant
N = such differences are never significant
0 = no familiarity with products from a specified country-pair
Country-pair

China

Other countries

United States
China
For any country-pair for which factors other than price always or frequently are a significant
factor in your firm’s purchases of large vertical shaft engines, identify the country-pair and report
the advantages or disadvantages imparted by such factors:

Business Proprietary
U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)
IV-3.

Page 20

Factor country comparisons.--For the factors listed below, please rate how large vertical shaft
engines produced in each country you identified in your response to the first question in Part IV
compares with large vertical shaft engines produced in each of the other countries identified.

If you are unfamiliar with the product from a particular country, please leave the boxes for those country
comparisons blank.

Inferior

Comparable

Product from
China compared
to product from
Nonsubject
countries

Superior

Inferior

Comparable

Product from
United States
compared to
product from
Nonsubject
countries

Superior

Inferior

Comparable

Factor

Superior

Product from
United States
compared to
product from
China

Availability
Brand
Delivery terms
Delivery time
Discounts offered
Engine features
Engine safety
Meet purchaser specifications
Minimum quantity requirements
Packaging
Payment terms
Price1
Product consistency
Product range
Quality meets industry standards
Quality exceeds industry standards
Reliability of supply
Technical support/service
U.S. transportation costs1
Warranty
1

A rating of superior on price and U.S. transportation costs indicates that the first country generally has lower
prices/U.S. transportation costs than the second country.

Business Proprietary
U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)

Page 21

PART V.—ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
V-1.

Other explanations.--If your firm would like to further explain a response to any question for
which a narrative response box was not provided, please note the question number and the
explanation in the space provided below.

V-2.

OMB statistics.--Please report 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
25 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.

Business Proprietary
U.S. Purchasers’ Questionnaire - Large Vertical Shaft Engines (Final)

Page 22

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://usitc.gov/investigations/701731/2020/vertical_shaft_engines_china/final.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: ENGCN

• E-mail.—E-mail the MS Word 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 does not purchase 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, it is 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 your firm submits (see
19 CFR § 207.7). Service of the questionnaire must be made in paper form.