Electrical wholesale company CEF is investing more than £10m in establishing an IT, data and marketing centre on the outskirts of Durham.CEF was established in 1951 and now employs a workforce of about 7,000 across 390 UK branches.After enjoying a period of growth, the company has now reached capacity at its Meadowfield office.As a result, it has revealed plans to expand into an environmentally friendly facility to be built on newly acquired land opposite its existing site.The design brief, met by Newcastle-based FaulknerBrowns Architects, was to develop a “technologically cutting edge building”, which would reflect the company’s industry and heritage.