The power source of the Compact Linear Collider (CLIC) relies on the generation and deceleration of a high-intensity electron drive beam. In order to provide the best radio-frequency (RF) to beam-energy transfer efficiency, the electron beam is accelerated using fully loaded RF cavities, which leads to strong beam loading effects resulting in a high-energy transient. The stability of the RF power produced by the drive beam depends on the stability of the drive beam energy and energy spread along the pulse. The control and the monitoring of the time evolution of the beam energy distribution are therefore crucial for the accelerator performance. For this purpose segmented beam dumps, which are simple and robust devices, have been designed and installed at the CLIC Test Facility 3 (CTF3). These devices are located at the end of spectrometer lines and provide horizontal beam profiles with a time resolution better than 10 ns. The segmented dumps are composed of parallel, vertical, metallic plates, and are based on the same principle as a Faraday cup: the impinging beam current is read by a fast acquisition channel. Both FLUKA and Geant4 simulations were performed to define the optimum detector geometry for beam energies ranging from 5 MeV to 150 MeV. This paper presents a detailed description of the different steps of the design: the optimization of the detector spatial resolution, the minimization of the thermal load and the long-term damage resulting from high radiation doses. Four segmented dumps are currently used in the CTF3 complex. Their measured performance and limitations are presented in this paper. Typical beam spectra as measured in the CTF3 linac are also presented along with a description of the RF manipulations needed for tuning the beam energy spectrum. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.