Living Green

Dell's new computer another step along the green path

PASADENA, Calif. — Oh, how far Dell Inc. has come down the green path.

A few years ago, the computer giant was picketed and chastised wherever it went for its poor environmental practices and weak recycling efforts.

On Tuesday, Michael Dell was the headliner at a green business conference here and was introduced as one of the most forward-thinking CEOs in the country when it comes to the environment.

Dell unveiled a new energy-efficient computer that his company plans to introduce later this year. It is built with a a high percentage of recyclable materials, and the model Dell showed off was even encased in bamboo. Meanwhile, other Dell officials were in the nation's capital wrapping up a huge computer recycling event it staged along with the Environmental Protection Agency.

This month, the world's No. 2 computer maker proudly proclaimed that its Round Rock, Texas headquarters was 100 percent powered by renewable energy. On Tuesday, Dell said his company would have no problem meeting its previously announced goal of being completely "carbon neutral" by the end of this year.

"I'll absolutely tell you there was a period when we weren't listening" to environmentalists and their concerns," Dell said Tuesday. "But it didn't take us long to kind of figure out what was going on and that we needed to listen."

Environmental groups still have qualms about the company. In Austin, the Texas Campaign for the Environment questions the claims Dell makes about its headquarters, since some of the energy used there is generated from methane gas derived from what the group calls a very environmentally sensitive landfill project. And while Dell's computer recycling program is considered the industry's best, the group says Dell could do more to support tougher electronics recycling legislation.

"They're going down the right path, but there's a long way to go still," said Robin Schneider, executive director of Texas Campaign for the Environment, which in 2002 waged a battle with Dell and other computer makers over recycling policies.

Today, Schneider said she'd give Dell an A-minus for its environmental policies and a B-minus for delivering on them.

Even so, "they've come a long way in six years," she said.

Much of the driving force behind Dell's environmental efforts comes from Tod(cq) Arbogast, who was named director of sustainable business during the heat of the battle over recycling six years ago.

"I'd say we've dramatically changed from where we were then versus where we are today," Arbogast said.

In addition to launching Dell's program of recycling any computer anywhere in the world, Arbogast is responsible for the green energy efforts at Dell's headquarters and its carbon neutrality program.

Dell, speaking here on Earth Day, said his company's environmental turnaround was just as much about making and saving money — and boosting business by saving its customers money — as it was about doing the right thing.

He mentioned how his company was able to reduce the annual cost of running its best-selling corporate desktop computer from about $100 a year to $22 a year.

"When I go in (to customers) and say, 'I could save you $78 per year per computer,' the issue isn't 'Do I like the environment or do I care about the environment?' " Dell said. "Energy efficiency resonates with everybody."

The cigar box-sized computer that Dell unveiled here Tuesday is just as powerful as a mini-tower desktop but is about 81 percent smaller, he said. It uses about 70 percent less power and is built with "a high degree" of recyclable materials inside, he said. The as-yet-unnamed machine will sell for between $500 and $700 when it hits the market later this year, he said.

Along with making more energy-efficient machines for its customers, the company is reducing its own operating costs dramatically by finding ways to cut energy costs, reduce packaging and taking other steps that as a by-product help the environment, Dell said.

Also driving Dell's increased interest in the environment is its location in an environmentally sensitive city, he acknowledged.

"We do live in Austin, Texas," he said. "Our people naturally click with this stuff."

At the same time, "I think when you have a company that's also your name, it has a little bit different meaning," Dell added. "I kind of care about what happens even after I'm dead."