A critical component to the efficient functioning of the Commercial Availability process is the requirement that a requester and a potential supplier engage in due diligence efforts, as provided under the Final Procedures, to determine whether a product is available in commercial quantities in a timely manner in the region.
The due diligence provisions require communications between the requester and potential suppliers, supported by documentation, to ensure that a proper inquiry into a product's commercial availability has been undertaken prior to the filing of the request.
Based on CITA's experience, there is a concern that, in certain cases, due diligence efforts have fallen short of those expected when the procedures were drafted; that product descriptions may not meet recognized standards; that potential suppliers may not be adequately substantiating their claims that they are to be able to supply requested products; and that CITA is not receiving complete information from interested entities regarding meaningful contact between requesters and potential suppliers necessary for CITA to make informed determinations.