Double Coin Imaging Awards

When Waikato brothers Vaughan and Grayson Laurent – and their wives, Dani and Larissa – started their trucking business, there was never any question about what the company colour was going to be.

Simple: It would be the colour of the secondhand truck they’d bought to launch their business.

The brothers – both qualified mechanics, but with a love of trucks – were just 28 (Vaughan) and 24 (Grayson) when they started Laurent Contractors…

And, as Vaughan puts it, they were starting out with virtually nothing – except enthusiasm and determination.

They had no guaranteed work – and only enough money to buy a 14-year-old Foden Alpha. It was still in the red of origin... ... 

What happens when one iconic regional transport company is taken over by another – both of them with well-known names and standout colour schemes?

Does the new owner keep the name and the colour scheme of the company it’s purchased…

Or does it rationalise things – gradually phase out the acquired name and livery, absorbing the operation into its 

own business?

That question arises with Wairarapa Livestock Transport and its electric blue trucks, with their sharp red, silver and white stripes.

It’s a good-looking livery that’s been a common sight on roads and farms in the Wairarapa for 40 years – the colour scheme staying largely unchanged through a co... ... 

Hayden Paddon’s new hauler is a 2021 Freightliner Cascadia 116 which tows the Paddon Racing Group (PRG) transporter and mobile workshop to major motorsport events.

And as you’d expect from a team that puts maximum effort into the presentation of its Hyundai competition cars, the Freightliner and dual axle semi-trailer also get some sharp treatment as well – making sure they stand out on the highway, at a rally service park, or taking a break at a Z Energy Truck Stop.

Hayden upgraded to the Cascadia last year after using a 2012 Freightliner Argosy since 2020.

Canterbury company CWT Ltd have been operating under the radar for nearly 30 years. But, with the addition of a striking new Kenworth K220 they’ve definitely stepped out of the shadows and into the spotlight.

Growing up on a farm, Shane Brown had always wanted to drive trucks but his father told him; “You can’t go and drive trucks straight away until you get a trade.”

So, after completing a diesel mechanics apprenticeship in Ashburton, Shane began his driving career at Porter Hire, driving a transporter part-time.

It wasn’t until Shane got a job at Ellesmere Transport that he realised his dream of becoming a livestock truck driver, just like his uncl... ...