Connecting in Europe

Connecting in Europe

Dell in EuropeWith operations from Norway to Spain, Ireland to Poland, Dell has been making a positive impact on the European economy since 1987. Since its initial investment in the United Kingdom, Dell has continued to increase its presence. Today, the company has a presence in 30 countries and employs 17,500 people across the Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA).

Dell’s flagship European manufacturing facility in Ireland supports Dell business in some 93 countries worldwide, thus positively contributing to European exports. Recently, itbecame the largest site in Ireland to achieve recognition under the joint Ireland Health and Safety Authority and US OSHA workplace health and safety certification. Dell’s newest ¤200 million manufacturing facility in Poland is expected to draw an additional ¤53 million in Dell supplier-related investments to that country. A similar positive impact was seen through Dell’s investment in Ireland. Dell’s physical presence in EMEA includes corporate headquarters in the United Kingdom, and southern Europeanheadquarters in France. These facilities work alongside a business centre in Slovakia and service and solution centresin Germany, Morocco, Ireland, and Scotland.

DELL AND EUROPE’S PRODUCTIVE CAPACITY: In each business decision it makes, Dell seeks to better serve its European customers, providing information communications technology (ICT) products and solutions to public sector institutions, large corporations, small businesses and consumers. By making businesses and government more productive, Dell helps make the European economy more productive. Indeed, the use of ICT products “doesn’t just lead to higher productivity; it enables firms to be more competitive

and innovative. … In the EU, 32 percent of companies reported innovations, with ICT enabling half of the product innovations and 75 percent of the process innovations.” 1

LISTENINg, SImPLIfYINg & ExPANDINg TEChNOLOgY ChOICE: In fostering the productive capacity of European businesses, Dell listens. The only way to truly respond to unique cultural and environmental differences is by listening. One of the messages clearly received from Dell’s European customers, regardless of size, is that complex, pre-configured technology is not always the best solution for business. It is Dell’s mission to bring the best cutting-edge technology to customers and make sure they get the technology they want, not the technology that industry thinks they need. To meet these demands, Dell seeks to provide greater technology choice. In addition to Windows-based platforms, Dell offers an increasing variety of products running on Linux-based solutions. Dell also offers multiple processor technologies, including a range of speeds and product manufacturers provided by bothAMD and Intel.

*1 ROBERT D ATKINSON, INFORMATION TECHNOLOGy AND INNOvATION FOUNDATION (ITIF), “BOOSTING EUROPEAN PROSPERITy THROUGH THE WIDESPREAD USE OF ICT”; NOvEMBER 2007, PG.5.

Dell recognizes that technology needs to meet the unique needs of the society, culture, and environment it serves.

Dell has been selected a top employer by Handelsblatt in Germany. In 2008, Dell was voted the best employer in the industry.Out of 88 companies from multiple industries Dell ranked number seven of Top Employersin Germany. In several key categories Dell reached a top five position: No. 1 for career and development opportunities, No. 2 for job security, and No. 4 for Company Culture.

� DELL IN EUROPE DELL IN EUROPE �

Unlike large enterprises and the government, Small and Medium Businesses (SMB) have different technology needs. Dell’s research in Europe (12 countries), in conjunction with the International Council for Small Business, found that 65 percent of SMBs said ICT is extremely important to their business; 94 percent of companies in the UK, France, and Germany say their most sophisticated ICT equipment is worth the cost. But these companies want products and services geared to their unique needs. Dell has responded through a

new product line (vostro) and related small business services. Since vostro’s launch, Dell continues to listen, and has invested more than 35,000 person-hours in specialized sales, technical support and customer service training, as well as developed online resources to help European small business owners get the most out of their ICT experience. With SMBs comprising 99 percent of all European enterprises and approximately 75 million jobs, supporting efficiency of the SMB sector is critical to European economic performance.

Small and medium Businesses

In the UK, Dell is a supporter of the Get Safe Online initiativelaunched in October 2005 to help consumers and small businesses protect themselves against online threats.

� DELL IN EUROPE DELL IN EUROPE �

On Safer Chemicals:

“ There are other examples of Dell’s leadership. Dell was the only U.S. electronics company to publicly support a European Union ban on decabromodiphenyl oxide — a hazardous flame retardant. Dell also came out in support of European legislation known as REACH to restrict hazardous chemicals. This is incredibly rare. Few firms eliminate hazardous substances from their supply chain before regulations come into effect. But even fewer are willing to visibly support public policies. When Dell made those public statements, it showed that they were confident that their supply chain would be willing to phase out hazardous chemicals. This says a lot about Dell’s ability to move on these issues, as well as the support they had from senior management.”

Alexandra McPherson North American Project Director, Clean Production Action www.cleanproduction.org

Dell’s 20 Years of greenDell recognizes the impact of the ICT industry on the environment and the corresponding responsibilities Dell has to its consumers, its employees, and the communities in which it operates. Over the past decade, Dell has built the highest level of environmental and energy standards into each stage of the Dell product life cycle: product design, manufacturing, consumer use, and end-of-life product management.

PRODUCT DESIgN:Dell’s designs default to the highest level ofenvironmental and chemical protection worldwide, ensuring energy efficiency andcompliance with hazardous materials andchemical content rules. In line with Europe’s higher standards, Dell has made all of itsproducts, as of 2007, compliant with the European Requirements on Hazardous Waste. In 2007 Dell introduced Energy Smart settings on several products. Dell’s OptiLex desktop PC, with a flat panel, now saves approximately ¤50 annually in energy costs. In addition, improvements in Dell’s PowerEdge servers reduce power requirements by up to 25 percent. Dell’s OptiPlex 745 uses 70 percent less energy than earlier models. Dell is continuing its efforts to save energy, with more power reduction built into new blade servers. By consolidating data centers and use of more sophisticated software through a process called ”virtualization” of data storage, even more energy is saved.

� DELL IN EUROPE DELL IN EUROPE �

“We are partnering with DellTM to protect the environment through their conservation programme. For every DellTM PC purchased, we contribute to DellTM Conservation fund and Carbonfund.org, a nonprofit environmental organisation that plants trees in sustainably managed forests. To date, we have contributed 16,000 trees to the programme, which will help offset the estimated average carbon produced from the PC during its average lifetime.”

ABN AMRO Group, Sustainabilty Report

CUSTOmER ExPERIENCE: Dell works with environmentally-conscious customers to develop custom energy-efficient solutions through Dell’s Energy Efficient Research Centre. For example, in working with the Swedish company, Vastra Gotalandsegionen (VGR), a major Dell customer in Sweden recently commissioned AF, a local technical consulting firm, to measure the environmental benefits of their recent Dell equipment purchases. AF identified three areas in which VGR and its employees would save energy through the use of new Dell equipment:

• Switching from traditional cathode ray tube (CRT) monitors to flat panel monitors will save VGR �,9�� megawatts per year, which is enough electricity to power ��� average Swedish homes for one year;

• Enabling an energy-save mode will save VGR �,8�� megawatts per year, or enough energy to power �99 average Swedish homes for one year; and,

• Changing from RT monitors to flat panel monitors will phase out �� to �� thousand kilograms of lead.

In addition to working with the Research Centre, individual consumers have the ability to offset the carbon impact of electricity

required to power their computers through the “Plant a Tree for Me” program. Dell hasa similar program for its corporate clients through the “Plant a Forest for Me” program. Dell is the first international technology company to offset carbon emissions in this way.

mANUfACTURINg & LOgISTICS: Dell is working to make its global product delivery system as efficient as possible, moving away from air transportation to ground transportation. This has multiple impacts including savings to Dell which are passed onto the customer, lowering emissions rates overall, and preserving transportation jobs in Europe. In addition, Dell is working to reduce its total carbon intensity by an additional 15 percent by 2012. The company’s goal is to be carbon neutral by the end of 2008. Further, Dell works with its suppliers to apply these same goals to their businesses.

Dell is even examining environmental impact down to its catalog advertisements and sales. During fiscal year 2007, Dell increased the sourcing of catalog paper from a European mill that offers 100 percent recycled and 80 percent post-consumer waste paper for a portion of our U.S. and European catalogrequirements. Dell estimates this switch saved 589,292 trees, prevented 121 million pounds of potential greenhouse gases from being released, and prevented wastewater that would have filled 303 pools.

Blue Angel environmenTAl lABel

Dell’s optiPlex desktop and Dell brandedprinter models (for the european market)meet the standards of germany’s Blue Angel voluntary environmental label. The label requires products to:

• be energy efficient

• allow for expansion and longevity

• use no environmentally harmful

substances wherever technically possible

• meet low noise emission requirements

• participate in a program for reuse and recycling

� DELL IN EUROPE DELL IN EUROPE 8

End of Life Product management: Dell has a global recovery and recycling supply chain to recycle parts and materials, substantially improve recycling and reuse rates, and reduce the percentage of waste materials that goes into landfills. Dell is currently the only computer manufacturer to offer computer and printer recycling free of charge. The company announced its recycling program in 2006, and to date has implemented it in 57 countries on six continents, including throughout Europe and recent expansions in Russia and Hungary.

Dell’s recycling program includes a partnership with the National Christina Foundation. The program helps disabled and economically disadvantaged children and adults access computer technology. Dell first introduced the program in 2000 in the United States. The program is now available in France, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. Partnerships include Ecodair and Emmaus in France, the RT Centre in Ireland, and ReCom in the United Kingdom.

Available

Not Yet Available

Staff volunteers collected over 12,000kilograms of IT material at Dell’s recycling day in Rueil-Malmaison on the outskirts of Paris, France. The equipment collected included more than 1,200 computers, printers and monitors, which were transported to the event by car, bike, and foot.

Dell Recycles Worldwide

fUTURE IN EUROPE: Barring existing and unforeseen barriers to trade in technology, we anticipate Dell will continue its current trajectory of growth and expansion in Europe. In addition, Dell anticipates continuing to support the communities in which it operates.

SUPPORT fROm ThE DELL fOUNDATION: Dell works in partnership with local communities. Dell and the French Red Cross formed the first public-private partnership there with the Centre Informatique pour Tous to help disadvantaged youths. Programs such as the Dell Foundation Equipping youth Grants offer direct financial assistance to nonprofit organizations and programs that strive to equip youth and provide the tools to excel in a digitally-driven economy. The reach of the Dell Foundation continued to expand globally in 2006. In Europe, the Foundation awarded grants to organizations in Germany, Ireland, Italy, Slovakia, Spain, and the United Kingdom.

for more information on the foundation, see www.DELL.com/dellfoundation.

9 DELL IN EUROPE DELL IN EUROPE �0

For more information or questions, please contact us at (512) 746-8748 or [email protected].

Dell Inc.One Dell Way, RR1-33

Round Rock, Texas 78681www.DELL.com/publicpolicy