Abstract: There is provided a pick-and-place system for transferring and installing a contoured composite structure onto a mandrel, in a composite manufacturing system. The pick-and-place system includes a tray station having a tray assembly to hold the contoured composite structure, prior to transfer and installation onto the mandrel. The pick-and-place system further includes an installation station having the mandrel and a pick-and-place assembly. The mandrel is designed to receive the contoured composite structure, and designed to move along a moving manufacturing line, via a conveyor assembly. The pick-and-place assembly includes a gantry assembly, a main beam suspended from the gantry assembly, the main beam having a plurality of end effector assemblies and a plurality of indexing assemblies, a vacuum system coupled to the main beam, a load balancer assembly coupling the main beam to the gantry assembly, and a control system coupled to the pick-and-place assembly, to operably control the pick-and-place-assembly.