The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) is set to undertake an investigation lodged by Japanese maker Hitachi Metals Ltd. against a group of 30 companies which the latter alleged imported and sold goods that infringed the technology patent of its sintered rare earth magnets.

In a case filed Aug. 17 before the ITC, Hitachi wants to block the importation of products from China that uses rare earth metals. The Japanese maker of specialty metal products that contain sintered rare earth magnets lodged the complaint against a number of Chinese companies that mine or use the metals, as well as those import or manufacture end products that utilise them. These include Skullcandy Inc., Bose Corp., DeWALT Industrial Tool Corp. and Adidas America Inc., among others. It alleged the companies violated Section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930.

Tokyo-based Hitachi Metals maintained it already has an agreement with Molycorp, Inc., the only U.S.-based miner and processor of rare earth metals, to manufacture the magnets, with production already scheduled to start in 2013.

"Hitachi Metals seeks a dramatic remedy threatening a massive upset to the national economy," audio-equipment seller Skullcandy Inc. said in a filing with the ITC, noting any ban on rare earths imports and subsequent end-products would greatly damage public health since the magnets are likewise being used in surgical microscopes, radiation equipment, insulin pumps and robotic surgical systems.

"There's no proof that Hitachi, its licensees or a third party can replace more than a small part of the volume of articles potentially subject to an exclusion order and a cease and desist order within a commercially reasonable time," Skullcandy said.

"Even if U.S. rare earth production ramps up, much of the processing/alloying and metal fabrication would still occur in China," it added.

Hitachi Metals said it would be able to address for any loss of available products if Chinese made rare-earth magnets are stopped immediately at the U.S. border.

The audio-equipment seller advised the ITC it "should not simply take Hitachi Metals' word for it" that it can deliver in time the requirements for rare earths and its end product sintered rare earth magnets.

The following companies are respondents to the ITC's investigation:

1) Yantai Zhenghai Magnetic Material Co., Ltd., of China;

2) Ningbo Jinji Strong Magnetic Material Co., Ltd., of China;

3) Earth-Panda Advance Magnetic Material Co., Ltd., of China;

4) Skullcandy, Inc., of San Clemente, CA;

5) Beats Electronics, LLC, of Santa Monica, CA;

6) Monster Cable Products, Inc., of Brisbane, CA;

7) Bose Corp. of Framingham, MA;

8) Callaway Golf Co. of Carlsbad, CA;

9) Taylor Made Golf Co. of Carlsbad, CA;

10) Adidas America, Inc., of Portland, OR;

11) Milwaukee Electric Tool Corp. of Brookfield, WI;

12) Techtronic Industries Co. Ltd. of Hong Kong;

13) DeWALT Industrial Tool Corp. of Towson, MD;

14) Electro-Voice, Inc., of Burnsville, MN;

15) Shure Inc. of Niles, IL;

16) AKG Acoustics GmbH of Austria;

17) Harman International Industries of Stamford, CT;

18) Maxon Precision Motors, Inc., of Fall River, MA;

19) Dr. Fritz Faulhaber GmBH & Co. KG of Germany;

20) Micromo Electronics, Inc., of Clearwater, FL;

21) TELEX Communications, Inc., of Burnsville, MN;

22) Bosch Security Systems, Inc., of Burnsville, MN;

23) Electro-Optics Technology, Inc., of Traverse City, MI;

24) Nexteer Automotive Corp. of Saginaw, MI;

25) Bunting Magnetics Co. of Newton, KS;

26) Viona Corp. of Syosset, NY;

27) Allstar Magnetics LLC of Vancouver, WA;

28) Dura Magnetics Inc. of Sylvania, OH; and

29) Integrated Magnetics, Inc., of Culver City, CA.