Apple may be getting all the press by shipping swank new MacBook Pros with LED backlights and Intel's efficient Santa Rosa innards, but Dell isn't about to let its Zero Carbon Initiative go unnoticed.

The PC giant wants to be known as the greenest technology company by, in part, reducing the "carbon intensity of its global operations by 15 percent by 2012."

As a first step in reducing emissions, Dell recently completed a power-management pilot on the more than 50,000 computers on the company's internal network. The pilot resulted in the savings of about 13 million kilowatt hours of electricity, equivalent to preventing the emission of 8,500 tons of CO2 and saving $1.8 million annually. Dell said today it would also work to identify ways to help its corporate customers achieve similar energy savings.

Dell also wants the community to get involved and is soliciting ideas via its IdeaStorm site. And in a way of spreading its influence, the company will be leaning on suppliers to clean up their act.

Dell has requested that its primary suppliers begin reporting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions data. Suppliers risk having their overall scores reduced during Dell quarterly business reviews for not identifying and publicly reporting GHG emissions. A supplier’s volume of Dell business can be affected by the scores earned on reviews. Dell will work with suppliers on emissions reduction strategies once data is collected.

You can catch more details in the announcement.