Semi-OT - air compressors & noise reduction, Seeking the wisdom of the mighty list... Options

[campbellcj]

My wife's new business requires installing a mid-sized compressor, which in itself is no big deal and has been beaten to death in prior threads.

The catch is, this installation needs to be inside an office in a rather high-end medical building. We need to figure out a way to shield the compressor both visually and audibly from other clients inside the suite as well as other tenants and neighbors.

The visual part is no sweat as we can build a cabinet/closet. But, I assume it will need some airflow for intake as well as cooling purposes, so it can't be completely sealed up.

Will a small ventilated closet (similar to what some people's water heaters are installed in) lined with Dynamat or a similar material be adequate to damp most of the compressor noise? Or would the sound just escape thru the vents?

Also, are there certain "quiet" compressors that are designed for this type of application?

Lastly, I am thinking that if we get a large tank, we could somewhat lessen having to run the compressor frequently during business hours. With a large enough tank we could potentially run it on a timer at 8am before opening and refill at lunchtime if needed. Does this make sense?

Thanks a bunch for any tips. This is kind of a last-minute crisis.