Nordson Corporation (Nasdaq: NDSN) and the Nordson Corporation Foundation today announced that they have contributed a combined $4 million to charity during the fiscal year ended October 31, 2012. Nordson’s giving is focused on nonprofit organizations in the U.S. where the company has major operations, including Ohio, Colorado, Georgia, California, Rhode Island, and New Jersey. More recently, Nordson has expanded its giving to include selected international locations.

Grants from the Nordson Corporation Foundation accounted for approximately $2.8 million of the total amount awarded and were distributed in the areas of arts and culture, civic affairs, education and human welfare. Education was the largest giving area, in accordance with the funding focus of the Foundation.

In addition to grants awarded by the Nordson Corporation Foundation, Nordson provided an additional $1.2 million in direct corporate support to various organizations through its Matching Gift program, United Way, and other corporate donations. Nordson employees also donated thousands of hours of their time to charity during the year through the company’s Time ‘n Talent volunteer program.

Nordson also has been recognized for its dedication to community service by being named a 2012 finalist for The Medical Mutual Pillar Award for Community Service, an award presented by Smart Business to honor businesses dedicated to making Northeast Ohio a better place to live.

“Giving back to the community is an essential pillar of Nordson’s corporate philosophy,” stated Cecilia Render, Executive Director, Nordson Corporation Foundation. “We are proud to support the important work these agencies provide and hope that through our contributions, we can assist in making our communities better places to live and work.”

The Nordson Corporation Foundation is the successor to the Nordson Foundation, which was created in 1952 by Walter G. Nord, founder of Nordson Corporation. In 1988, the original foundation was reorganized to create the Nord Family Foundation and the Nordson Corporation Foundation. Since 1989, the Nordson Corporation Foundation has awarded millions of dollars in grants in four broad categories: arts and culture, civic affairs, education and human welfare. More information on applying for grants is available at www.nordson.com/givingback.

Nordson Corporation delivers precision technology solutions that help customers increase throughput, productivity and up-time, enable new products and features, and decrease material usage. The company engineers, manufactures and markets differentiated products and systems used for dispensing and processing adhesives, plastics, coatings, sealants and biomaterials, fluid management, test and inspection, UV curing and plasma surface treatment, all supported by application expertise and direct global sales and service. Nordson serves a wide variety of consumer non-durable, durable and technology end markets including packaging, nonwovens, electronics, medical, appliances, energy, transportation, construction, and general product assembly and finishing. Founded in 1954 and headquartered in Westlake, Ohio, the company has operations and support offices in more than 30 countries. Visit Nordson on the web at www.nordson.com, www.twitter.com/Nordson_Corp or www.facebook.com/nordson.