China Butt-Weld Pipe Fittings: Fire Sprinkler Fittings Subject to AD Duties, Commerce Says

Fire-protection welded outlets imported by SIGMA are subject to antidumping duties on carbon steel butt-weld pipe fittings from China, the Commerce Department said in a recent scope ruling. SIGMA’s fittings, which are welded to fire-protection system water pipes on one end and to a threaded sprinkler head on the other, meet the physical requirements of the scope in that they have an inside diameter of less than 14 inches, are made of forged carbon steel, and are used to join pipe in conditions that require permanent welds, Commerce said. The fact that they are only welded on one end does not exclude them from coverage, the agency said, noting that end caps are one of the most common shapes of butt-weld fittings. Nor does the “fish-mouth”-shaped opening on the welded end, as “there are no angle restrictions to what is considered a butt-welded end or connection according to the scope.” SIGMA recently filed a lawsuit challenging the scope ruling at the Court of International Trade.