Capital goods are durable goods which are used in manufacturing operations to produce other goods for consumption. Capital goods include machinery and equipment. Capital equipment is equipment used in the production of other products. The equipment is not consumed or incorporated into the new product. According to Stephen Green in an essay on the Export America website, import restrictions established by other countries involving used goods vary by product and country of destination. In the case of used or remanufactured capital equipment, some foreign countries require elaborate documentation including certificates authenticated by the commercial office of their local Embassies or Consulates, and other countries forbid the import of all used or remanufactured machinery. At the same time, many countries permit the unrestricted importation of used or refurbished equipment on the same terms as new capital equipment. Safety and environmental regulations pose additional challenges that make the penetration of certain markets difficult for companies interested in exporting used capital equipment.
According to Green, the U.S. Department of Commerce reports that statistical information on U.S. exports of used equipment and remanufactured automotive parts is not available. However, Department of Commerce officials indicate that most inquiries about used equipment come from Latin America and in particular Central America. Commerce Department analysts attribute this trend to geographical proximity and comparatively lower shipping costs of capital goods to this part of the world from the United States. Given the nature of the remanufacturing and the fact that it can be done best by the Original Equipment Manufacturer, this is an industry characterized by a large number of OEMs rather than one that is dominated by a few large companies (Green).
According to an essay by Lou Pixley on the Universal Instruments Remanufactured Machine Di...